Lost Loves
by 67OtakuGirl24X3
Summary: Welcome to the twisty-turny lives of 3 young witches: the Lumbach twins Caitlyn and Catherin, plus their friend Gaia Robertson. NOTE: This story is a collaboration with KiwiFruit07. She writes odd # chapters, I write even. This story corresponds with Tale of the Bronze Trio. Satoshi, the main character Shiro's brother, is MUCH more involved with this one. Reviews are loved!
1. Chapter 1

"What? I don't want to attend Divination!" Caitlyn Lumbach, attending Hogwarts Academy of Witchcraft and Wizardry for her third year, squealed. She walked down the stone streets of Diagon Alley, looking at her supply list.

"What? I said that I wanted to do Divination and they didn't put it on my list!" Caitlyn's twin sister, Catherin, complained. Caitlyn slapped her forehead.

"Ugh, they got us mixed up again!" Every year they had done this. Catherin looked down at her list. The book, _Unfogging the Future _by Cassandra Vablatsky, was not on her list. Instead, the book was on Caitlyn's list.

"Oy, this is a pain." Catherin groaned.

"Well, we can still buy the books we need even if they aren't on our list."

"We're thirteen, we've been at this school for three years now. When will they learn?"

"Well, Fred and George go through the same thing as us." Caitlyn blushed slightly as she mentioned the twins' names. She was referring to the two Weasley's, who were such troublemakers that it's almost a pain to even talk to them. But Caitlyn found them rather intriguing. She laughed at their ridiculous jokes, smiled when they pranked the teachers, and smirked when they insulted Draco Malfoy. The boys were a year above them, but they still were friends with them.

"Ah, yes. Fred and George Weasley. The wonderful twins. We should both date them." Catherin smiled.

"But then if one of us marries a twin, the other can't marry a twin because the other twin would be a distant relative of us." Caitlyn said.

"Good. You can date a twin. Meanwhile I can have their friend; Satoshi Ueda." Catherin smirked.

"You do realize that he will never like you? He's a player!" Caitlyn pointed out.

"Blimey, Caitlyn, you are such a hater."

"But you know it's true…"

"You just watch! I will date Satoshi Ueda, I WILL!" The twins walked into Flourish & Blotts only to see Satoshi and his younger brother, Shiro (a second year) browsing the shelves. "And we're leaving!" Catherin spun around on her heels and back out of the door. Caitlyn laughed and sighed at her sister's non-existing love life.

"She's a hopeless romantic." She muttered under her breath.

"Oy! You, the blonde!" Satoshi's voice rang out through the store. Shiro nudged his brother and whispered something into his ear, but Satoshi shrugged it off. Caitlyn turned her head to look at the Japanese boy and his brother, who looked just like he did in his second year. She walked up to them. "Aren't you Jeffrey Knumlach's cousin? I thought you were a twin…Where's the other one?" Caitlyn stared at the boy.

"Yes, um…she's outside." She said plainly.

"Damn. So which one are you?"

"Language, Satoshi…" Shiro muttered. Satoshi waved him away.

"Caitlyn…" Satoshi's face fell for a moment, but he smiled.

"Ah, yes. Caitlyn." Caitlyn and Catherin were often mixed up. The only way to tell the difference was that Caitlyn's bangs fell slightly over her eyes and Catherin's were cut to fall right above her eyebrows. But honestly, no one pays attention to bangs.

"Bye, I'm going to go to the Quidditch Supply Shop." Satoshi suddenly said. Shiro's eyebrows raised in a questioning manner as Satoshi walked out of the doors.

"Don't mind him, he just wants the chance to see another blonde girl. No offense," Shiro added quickly. "He thinks that seeing one of them is like watching a new movie for the first time."

"Blimey, we aren't that rare," Caitlyn laughed.

"My name's Shiro Ueda. A pleasure to meet you." Shiro held out his hand and Caitlyn took it, shaking it.

"My pleasure as well. I'm Caitlyn Lumbach." Shiro smiled up at her. Surprisingly, Shiro was only about an inch shorter than her. Even though Caitlyn was thirteen, she was rather short for her age. Shiro saw Caitlyn's expression and sighed.

"Yes, I know I'm short."

"Oh, you aren't that short. By the end of the year you'll be way taller than me." Caitlyn assured him. Shiro shrugged and looked at Caitlyn, as if trying to memorize every inch of her face.

"I-I guess I'll go then. I might need to catch up with Satoshi…for all I know he could be snogging a random girl he found off the street right now." Caitlyn laughed at the twelve year old's comment and watched him exit the store.

"Alright, let's get a start on this shopping." Caitlyn looked around the shelves and walked to a section labeled "SWI" and found the book she was looking for; _Intermediate Transfiguration _by Emeric Switch. She pulled out two copies of the book. She walked over to an aisle with a line of books labeled "GOS" and looked for _The Standard Book of Spells _by Miranda Goshawk, third year. Eventually she found it and once again pulled two copies out from the shelf. She carried four books in her arms at this moment, and she was really wishing her sister hadn't run off so she could carry her own books.

"CAITLYN! YOU WOULD NEVER BELIEVE WHAT JUST HAPPENED!" Sure enough, her naïve twin sister shot through the doors of the store. Heads turned to look at the girl as she leapt up the stairs to her sister. "So, I was just walking down the street-"

"No, before you continue, take your books. I really don't want to carry them." Caitlyn interrupted as she handed Catherin's books to her.

"Okay, so I was just walking down the street, when suddenly SATOSHI UEDA WALKS UP TO ME AND SAYS HI." Catherin was grinning from ear to ear as she told the story. "He says, 'Oy! You, the blonde!' so I turn around to see him standing behind me. He walks up to me and asks me if I was Catherin! I, of course, said yes. He smiled and said, 'Nice to meet you, Catherin.' Only, I've already met him!" She went on and on and just did not shut up. Caitlyn ignored her, only pretending to listen, and continued to look for books, handing Catherin's books to her as she went.

Eventually, after paying for the books and exiting the store, then walked down the street to Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour to have a quick snack before leaving Diagon Alley.

"Wait, before we leave I want to go to the Quidditch Supply Shop." Caitlyn said. Being the Seeker for the Ravenclaw Quidditch team, she constantly needed new Quidditch supplies.

"How can you like Quidditch? It's so brutal…" Catherin commented.

"Satoshi likes Quidditch." Caitlyn said plainly.

"I love Quidditch!" Caitlyn rolled her eyes. Catherin smiled nervously. They both walked into the store and Caitlyn sighed happily. This was the place she felt most happy. Everything around her was Quidditch this, Quidditch that. It was heaven. Everything was sold there from Quidditch robes, broomsticks, broomstick polish, even Quaffle polish.

But Caitlyn's personal favorite was the wall of Golden Snitches.

It was a whole wall on one end of the store just filled with tiny boxes containing the metallic, golden balls. They looked beautiful, Caitlyn thought, and she looked forward to coming to Diagon Alley just for this.

With her being the Seeker and all, she often held Snitches in her hands. The cold feeling they have in her hands were soothing. She still had the first Snitch that she caught in the pouch she had tied to her waist at all times. She felt it move slightly and pulled it out of the bag, letting it sit in her hands for a moment. Eventually, it's little wings appeared and it rose out of her palm. It hovered around her head for a few moments, then fluttered around Catherin's head, who looked about ready to fall asleep. She tried to interest herself by looking at a magazine.

"Whoa," Caitlyn suddenly said. Catherin looked up to see her sister looking at a broomstick.

"What's so great about that?"

"Look, it's a Nimbus 2001!"

"It probably costs a fortune…"

"Well, yes, but just look at it!"

"Wonderful. Marvelous. Amazing. Let's go." Catherin said sarcastically.

"No, just a little longer!"

"Didn't they come out with the Nimbus 2000 just last year?"

"Yes, _last _year! But this is new, this is so…this year!" Caitlyn said, ecstatic. Catherin sighed.

"Caitlyn, you have a Nimbus 2000 already. Do you really think Mum and Dad will really get you this one?" It was Caitlyn's turn to sigh.

"No, I know that they won't." She snatched her Snitch from the air without looking up and shoved it into her pouch. The two girls walked out of the store and went to the Leaky Cauldron. They found their parents waiting for them, sitting at a table drinking bottles butterbeer.

"Oy, Mum! Dad! They came out with the Nimbus 2001!" Caitlyn said excitedly as she ran to greet her parents.

"Already?" Her father said. "I thought that they just came out with the Nimbus 2000!"

"Yes, but that was last year!" Caitlyn said, clasping her hands together.

"So, Caitlyn, any news from you?" Their mother said, turning to Catherin.

"Honestly, mum. Don't you know by now that I'm Catherin?"

"Ah, yes. Of course."

"Besides, you should know that the one talking about the newest Quidditch supplies is Caitlyn." Mr. Lumbach commented. Mrs. Lumbach smiled and turned to Catherin again.

"So?"

"So what?"

"So…any news?"

"Oh, right…Um, I saw Satoshi…" She blushed slightly.

"How come you change so much when you talk about Satoshi when you talk to Mum about him?" Caitlyn questioned. Catherin glared at her and Caitlyn just smirked.

"Well maybe because it's a bit awkward talking about cute guys with my mother!" She snapped. Her father smiled.

"I keep hoping for that son…" He said with a shake of his head.

After the twins had a drink of butterbeer themselves, they all exited the Leaky Cauldron. They left for their house in Godric's Hollow and as soon as they entered the house the girls collapsed on the couch. Moving photos of the girls when they were younger were on the fireplace mantel. One showed the girls in a sandbox, and another showed Caitlyn zooming around on a toy broomstick. Catherin was sitting on the floor giggling at her sister. A fire began to burn in the fireplace with a wave of the mother's wand.

The family of four ate their dinner happily and the twins showered.

As they were washing their faces and preparing for bed, they discussed school.

"School this year is going to be so much fun." Catherin said as she splashed water in her face. Caitlyn nodded, not being able to say anything, considering she was brushing her teeth. "I'm going to ask Satoshi out on the first day of school." Caitlyn rolled her eyes. "Unless he has a girlfriend…oh well, I could just ask him on the second day of school. He'd have broken up with her by then." Caitlyn wanted to laugh but if she did she would splat toothpaste all over her mirror. She rinsed in her sink.

"Catherin, if you can say that then you know that he would last one day with you!" Caitlyn said.

"Well, obviously he wouldn't because I am just that amazing."

"Bloody heck, you're just in denial."

"Language, dear sister."

"I said heck!"

"Oh no, the other word."

"Bloody?" Caitlyn cocked her head.

"Yes, that one." Catherin waved her hand at Caitlyn.

"Hm, I bloody don't care what you say about the bloody word 'bloody'. It just happens to be bloody brilliant." Caitlyn was trying to put the word "bloody" in every possible way into the sentences she was saying. Catherin threw her hands up into the air.

"Brilliant." She sighed.

"Bloody brilliant, correction." Caitlyn smirked. "You know, if you can't put up with me saying 'bloody', you are going to have a problem with Satoshi and all the swearing he does." Catherin's eyes widened.

"Bloody heck, Caitlyn." She said. Caitlyn laughed.

"That's what I thought." They walked out of the bathroom and into their bedroom, changing into their pajamas. They jumped into their beds and Catherin immediately fell into a deep sleep.

Caitlyn, however, couldn't get to sleep. She snuck out of her bed and sat in the window ceil and stared at the night sky. The moon was full, and the sky was filled with stars. She closed her eyes and silently muttered under her breath, "Let me have the best year at Hogwarts possible this year." She opened her eyes and crawled back into her bed, pulling the blankets over her.


	2. Chapter 2

"-_Unfogging the Future_… Check. _A Guide to Advanced Transfiguration_… Check. That butt-load of Gilderoy Lockhart crap… Check. _The Monster Book of Monsters… _Unfortunately, check." Gaia Robertson crossed off all the textbooks from her supply list. Out of her three years of purchasing things for her term at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, this was by far already the most interesting. Not only did her Care of Magical Creatures textbook try to attack the man selling books, but the ever-so-famous Gilderoy Lockhart himself was present at Flourish & Botts. He was holding a book signing, so the place was PACKED. Gaia, of course, couldn't care less about him: so he had a pretty smile and could write books. So?

Now, let's introduce you to Gaia. As mentioned previously, she was entering her third year at Hogwarts. Back in her first year, she'd been sorted into the Hufflepuff house, along with Catherin Lumbach. Gaia had, like the Lumbach twins, blonde hair, though closer to a _dirty _blonde. It was short, barely reaching her shoulders, and wavy (sometimes curly, depending on the weather). She wore glasses, which were a different color and style every other year; this year, they were dark purple. She was tall for her age, and though not overweight, she wasn't skinny in the least.

Gaia flung herself out the door, sucking the fresh air into her lungs. It felt good to be outside, where it wasn't making you claustrophobic and everyone around you wasn't screaming "GILDEROY, I LOVE YOU!" Gaia sighed happily, checking over her list. She compared it with her basket, and grinned in relief: she'd purchased everything. She sat dramatically on a bench, stretching her arms and legs. _I'll just rest here for a while, _she thought, closing her blue eyes lightly. Basket still in hand, she ended up falling asleep.

"Eh? What time is it?" she asked herself a while later. She checked her watch; fortunately, she'd only been asleep for 15 minutes. As she blinked to get her view into focus, she noticed two brown haired boys walking into Flourish & Blotts. From behind, they looked like they could be twins, except the one boy was taller and his hair was a shade darker than the other boy's. A few more shades and it'd be black.

The sight of these boys- Satoshi and Shiro Ueda- filled Gaia with bittersweet feelings. Shiro was incredibly nice: he was a Ravenclaw second year, and had a good sense of humor, friendship, and the difference between right and wrong. Gaia met him because he was best of friends with one of Gaia's fellow Hufflepuffs, Konata Verdent. Well, there was that and the fact that Gaia'd dated Satoshi.

That wasn't saying much, though.

Satoshi was a fourth year, and known mainly for 3 main things: having the Weasley twins as close friends, being a Qudditch fanatic (but never making it on the team), and never dating a girl for more than a week. Even so, Satoshi was never single for more than a day or two. Yes, every girl knew his reputation, but every girl still wanted him. He was popular, hilarious, and in general, a friendly and nice guy. Not to mention on a scale of 1 to 10 for his looks, it was considered a crime within the female population to rate him anything below an 8.5.

Gaia quickly looked away. In the back of her mind, she considered waving to Shiro, but her angry feelings toward Satoshi took control. She and Satoshi had dated for 3 days, and she found that the rumors were true: he made you feel like you were perfect, and even sometimes ventured to tell you that you were. It was also rumored that he was a simply AMAZING kisser, but Gaia hadn't been brave enough to find that out. She wanted her first kiss to be with someone special, not some cute player.

Gaia was so busy gripping the bench and staring at the ground, blushing furiously, to see the Lumbach twins walk by. She noticed them through her peripheral vision, and snapped her head up to say hello to them. However, they'd closed the door behind them before she could say anything."This won't end well," she muttered, gathering up her items: Catherin was head over heels for Satoshi.

"Oy, Gaia! Hi!" a feminine voice squeaked. Gaia looked up from her basket of supplies and smiled, causing her to not notice Catherin running out of the store red-faced.

"Oh, hey Konata!" Konata Verdent, who had the appearance of a 9 year old, trotted into view, her best friend Blaze Alexanders close behind. Blaze was a blonde as well, though a different blonde than the others': her hair was almost _yellow_ in a way. She was VERY tall for her age of 12, and wore glasses as well, although hers were blue. She was in Gryffindor, like Satoshi.

"Have you done all your shopping yet?" Gaia inquired.

Konata shook her head, her light brown side ponytail smacking into her face. "No, we just got here. We were thinking we'd start off with getting some ice cream though. Would you like to come?"

"Well, I bought all my stuff, I still have money left, it's hot, and my mum isn't coming for another 40 some minutes- probably a couple hours, with her sense of time- so yeah, that sounds great!"

Konata nodded, blushing slightly and smiling sheepishly as she often did even around her closest of friends. In fact, Hannah Abbott and Blaze were probably the only people she didn't always act shy around (though she only _tended _to be timid around Shiro). Gaia grinned at her, acknowledged Blaze's presence by giving her a salute, and the three girls headed into Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour.

After ordering their ice cream (Blaze got blueberry, Konata got cherry, and Gaia got something she couldn't identify but it was rainbow so she got it), the girls found a bench outside since Konata's pet rat, Tar, wasn't allowed inside the parlour. The girls licked their ice cream cones quickly in effort to prevent it from melting all over, and chatted about random topics that came to mind for a good duration of time. After finishing off the cones, Blaze and Konata bid their farewells and went off to begin their shopping.

"Watch out for the bookstore! Gilderoy Lockhart is in there having a book signing, it's a MADHOUSE! It was when I was in there, at least," Gaia warned. Blaze and Konata nodded, proceeding to the first store they decided to visit.

"Who's Gilderoy Lockhart?" Konata asked quietly. Blaze shrugged.

"Beats me."

Gaia's pureblood witch mother came for her 30 minutes late ("A new record, Mum!"), but Gaia was still happy to see her and head home. She immediately headed to her bedroom, saying a quick greeting to her Muggle father. She pounced through her doorway, unsuccessfully trying not to slam it behind her.

"Hi Glace, I'm home, my baby!" she crooned. Her pure white ferret popped her head out of her hammock, her little nose twitching. She disappeared back inside and soon was scurrying down the ladder at the back end. Gaia opened the cage door, scooping up the weasel and planting a kiss on her head. Hugging Glace to her chest, she fell back on her bed.

"Looks like we'll be going back to school soon… It's about bloody time. I miss everyone…" Gaia pointlessly listed names of her closest friends and favorite professors. She paused a moment after going through them all, and held Glace a little tighter. "And frankly, I miss Satoshi," she whispered.


	3. Chapter 3

Caitlyn was comfortable in her bed, the covers wrapped around her in the way she found most pleasant, her head buried in pillows; ah, yes. She never wanted to wake up.

"WAKE UP!" Catherin-who was definitely a morning person-slammed the door open which sent a picture to fly off the wall. Catherin slowly hung it back up, for the younger version of herself was shaking of fear.

"Go away, I'm sleeping." Caitlyn muttered.

"If you're talking then you aren't asleep!" Catherin rang. Caitlyn rolled over to face her twin.

"Well I _was _asleep." She threw back the blankets and swung her feet onto the cold floor. Slowly, she got up from her bed smoothed out her pajamas, a habit of hers. Catherin blinked quickly and smiled.

"Do you know what day it is?" she said excitedly.

"Blimey, Catherin, I don't know. Christmas?" Caitlyn said sarcastically as she pulled on a fitted t-shirt that had the Ravenclaw crest on it. Catherin shook her head quickly.

"It's September first. Again." Catherin said.

"I did not know that, mate!" The girls broke out in fits of laughter. This was a yearly routine. Catherin wakes Caitlyn up, Caitlyn gets sarcastic about the date, and they break out into fits of laughter.

Caitlyn looked at her trunk with school supplies. The previous day she had emptied it of old books, empty ink jars, old essays, and old quills. Her cat, Phantom, was sitting on the lid staring at her with her yellow eyes. Caitlyn stroked her long, soft white fur and Phantom purred loudly.

"Why did you name the cat Phantom? That's just a little mental." Catherin said to her.

"Well, it's because she's all white with these beady little eyes."

"Like I said, that's mental." Catherin shook her head and sighed. She, unlike her sister, had an owl. It was a small owl, but still useful nonetheless. She had named the owl Persephone, after the Greek goddess. Right now the owl was perched on a branch in her cage, happily cooing. "I wish I could just use magic to clean out Persephone's cage. It's disgusting." She said, referring to the fetid smell of the cage.

"You don't have to use magic for everything, you know. We did everything by hand before we started school."

"I still believe that we should've gone to Muggle school before we started Hogwarts."

"Oy, not again, Catherin!" Caitlyn groaned. "Why are you so obsessed with Muggles?"

"Well, I don't know! They are all just magnificent creatures." Catherin said dreamily.

"They are humans, just like us."

"But have you ever seen their money? It's made out of paper!"

" That's American money and it's really hard to count…" Caitlyn added.

"Not really! It's just a bunch of ones, fives, tens, twenty-fives, fifties, twos if you're lucky, one-hundreds, and a bunch of other stuff!"

"Catherin, our currency is so much easier. Everyone knows that 493 Knuts and 17 Sickles in a Galleon. There are 29 Knuts in a Sickle." Caitlyn rolled her eyes. Catherin continued to marvel about American dollars and British pounds as they walked down the stairs to eat breakfast.

"Mum, can you get Catherin to shut her trap? She won't stop talking about money!" Caitlyn said to her mother.

"Hm, greedy, are we?" Mr. Lumbach scratched his chin as he looked up from his copy of the Daily Prophet, the Wizard newspaper.

"No, she's talking about Muggle money and she won't _shut up._" Caitlyn said. Catherin gently swatted at her thin arm and sat down at the table, which had bacon, toast, eggs, biscuits, and jam sitting on the surface.

"This I why I take Muggle Studies and you don't." Catherin said haughty.

"This is why you care and I don't." Caitlyn shot back.

"Girls, be nice to each other." Mrs. Lumbach warned as she too sat down to eat breakfast. They all breakfasted silently, for there wasn't really anything to talk about. Mr. Lumbach suddenly looked at the clock on the wall and his eyes widened.

"Blimey, I was supposed to leave ten minutes ago!" he said. He shot up from his chair, grabbed his hat and cloak, and shot out the door. Their father worked for the Ministry of Magic.

"So he isn't going to see us off to Hogwarts?" Caitlyn asked.

"He had to be in work early today." Mrs. Lumbach said.

"Oh," Catherin said. Her face fell. Mrs. Lumbach put her arms around her daughters' shoulders and pulled them in close.

"I'm sorry girls. He wanted to come." She said.

"It's okay, mum. We need to get going, anyway." Caitlyn said. The three Lumbachs went up the stairs to get the girls' trunks.

"_Locomotor." _Mrs. Lumbach said, and with a wave of her wand the twins' trunks lifted into the air and floated downstairs. "Grab your pets, girls, and let's go." They both nodded simultaneously. Catherin picked up Persephone's cage and Caitlyn snatched Phantom up from her bed and cradled her in her arms. They tramped downstairs and out to the driveway. The trunks were already packed into the back of the car with the help of a special charm to make the car seem a bit bigger than it actually was.

The girls got into the back while their mother sat in the driver's seat (obviously) so she could drive the girls to King's Cross train station. It was quite a long drive, almost an hour. Caitlyn looked just about ready to fall asleep once they reached the station. Her blonde hair that reached a little past her shoulders was a complete and utter mess, but her mother luckily had a brush in her purse.

The three entered the station, pushing the carts along with them. Of course, when they entered, the large Ueda family was disappearing through the column to Platform Nine and Three-Quarters. First Satoshi (he winked at the twins and Catherin giggled), then Shiro (he waved slightly at Caitlyn), next Came Sakura (the oldest girl), then Sana, and Mr. and Mrs. Ueda went in, each holding Satoko and Sakito's (the twins) hands. Caitlyn sighed. "Well, let's go!" She said cheerfully. She pushed her cart quickly and disappeared through the column as well. Catherin followed along with their mother. When they went through, the red Hogwarts Express greeted them in the station.

"Oy, blondes!" They turned to their right, and to no surprise, Satoshi Ueda was walking towards them. "I've taken quite a liking to you two. You want to ride with us on the train?" The twins blinked at him quickly. "Hah, it's funny when you do that. You look exactly the same."

"Um, who's 'us'?" Catherin stuttered.

"Oh, me, Fred, George, and Jeffrey." Caitlyn blushed slightly at the mention of the Weasley twins.

"Sure, we'll join you. By, Mum!" She said. Behind them, they couldn't see, but their mother was fighting the urge to laugh and tease her daughters. Satoshi put an arm around Catherin's shoulders and she turned so red cars would've stopped around her.

"So, Catherin. How are you?" He said to her as they walked towards the train.

"G-good. How are you?"

"Oh, I'm pleasant! This year, I'm going to play SO many pranks on the teachers! You'll see," He said, smiling wildly. Catherin smiled as well.

"Y-yes, I've seen you at your brilliant work." Catherin said.

"It's brilliant, you say? Well, I like to think so myself thank you!" Satoshi smiled proudly.

Caitlyn slowly pulled out her Golden Snitch and watched it flit around Satoshi and Catherin's heads.

"Whoa, is that a Snitch?" Satoshi suddenly said, pulling his arm off of Catherin's shoulders. She seemed to instantly cool down.

"Thanks, I felt like I might've hyperventilated if he didn't move soon," Catherin whispered into Caitlyn's ear. Caitlyn nodded and watched Satoshi in his failing attempt to catch the Snitch. She sighed and walked over to him quietly.

"Here, just hold your hand out, like so," Caitlyn held her hand in the air, "and grab it." She caught it as it tried to go underneath her arm. Satoshi looked at her, amazed.

"How did you do that?" He muttered under his breath. Caitlyn released the Snitch again.

"You try." She said. "As I showed you." But no matter how much Satoshi tried, he could not catch the golden metallic ball. Caitlyn looked at the clock on one of the columns.

"Blimey! The train's going to leave in ten minutes!" She exclaimed. Without looking away from the clock, she quickly snatched the Snitch and shoved it into her bag. Satoshi and Catherin gaped at her with equal looks. They quickly looked at each other, then back at Caitlyn. "What?"

"You're the Seeker for Ravenclaw, correct?" Satoshi said as they walked onto the train.

"Correct." Caitlyn looked back and smiled at him. The three walked down the aisle in the train to find a compartment.

"Ah, yes, they said that they would be in the third one to the right in this section…" Satoshi muttered as he walked ahead of the girls. He suddenly stopped and pulled open a compartment door. "Here it is!" He said cheerfully. He walked into the compartment.

Caitlyn prepared herself for seeing the twins. She had a secret crush on them since she first laid eyes on them. Not even Catherin knew, and Catherin and she were bonded by glue. She really liked both of the Weasley twins, but she preferred Fred over George any day. Besides, George had a girlfriend.

The two girls walked into the compartment to see their cousin; Jeffrey; Satoshi already sitting, and the Weasley twins sitting side by side.

"Hey, Sato, you never said that you were bringing girls!" George said slyly.

"Yeah, Sato, you never said you were bringing _TWIN_ girls!" Fred added.

"Yes, Sato, you never said you were bringing my _COUSINS_ in here!" Jeffrey said obviously a bit shocked.

"Oh, so these are those twin cousins of yours?" George asked.

"That one's cute. I call her." Fred claimed, pointing to Caitlyn. She felt her cheeks go pink as she sat across from Catherin, who had seated herself beside Satoshi. It just happens to be that seat was next to Fred Weasley.

Like Satoshi had done to Catherin, Fred put his arm around Caitlyn's shoulders.

"Brilliant." He said. "What year are you in?"

"Third," She responded shyly.

"Ooh, younger woman! I like that." He said, winking at her. "You are in Ravenclaw, right?" She nodded. "Ah, yes. I remember playing Quidditch against you once." Caitlyn was turning bright red by the minute.

"Y-yes, you won a-against us."

"Sorry, Harry was on our team. He's a great Seeker. Not that you aren't, you're brilliant!" Fred added. Caitlyn's face was cherry red.

"Blimey, your face can turn red, Caitlyn…" Catherin muttered.

"I didn't know it was physiologically possible!" Jeffrey laughed.

"Are you human…?" Fred whispered into Caitlyn's ear. She giggled.

"I am if you are." She said, smiling widely. She was getting used to the twins' humorous remarks, and she finally felt her face return to its normal color.

The six young students chatted about their classes and the teachers that they hate. Naturally, the boys all planned pranks and the girls told them not to, but sooner or later the girls were planning along with them. Then from a neighboring compartment,

"LOOK! THE CASTLE!" All of the students peered out the windows to see the brilliant castle in the distance. The train pulled into the station and the six got off, chatting happily. They all walked into the Great Hall together, but had to separate when they were required to sit at their tables.

"Hey!" Shiro Ueda called out to Caitlyn. He, like her, was a Ravenclaw. He sat down next to her and smiled.

"Where are your other friends?" Caitlyn inquired.

"Well, Blaze is in Gryffindor. Konata is in Hufflepuff. Terry, Michael, and Anthony are over there," he nodded his head towards the three boys, "but I like talking to you better." He responded.

"Um, I'm honored!" Caitlyn laughed. "But I thought you were also friends with Malfoy?" She hated Draco Malfoy. He was a second year Slytherin, and he was cruel. He thought of himself as high above all others.

Shiro grimaced. "I'm not REALLY friends with him…" he muttered. "He annoys me to death."

"Caitlyn!" A high-pitched voice called out. Caitlyn spun around. Second year Hermione Granger was jogging towards her, looking terribly worried. "Have you seen Harry and Ron? They weren't on the train!" Her bushy hair was even more messy than normal, if possible. Caitlyn shook her head. Hermione turned to Shiro hopefully. He too shook his head. "UGH, I am going to kill those idiots!" She muttered as she stomped off.

"Honestly, I don't know how those three can be friends." Shiro said.

"I heard they only became friends when Ron and Harry saved her from the ogre that was in the girls bathroom last year." Caitlyn said. Shiro nodded.

"Yeah, that's what happened." He said, smiling slightly.

"Where do you think they are?" Caitlyn wondered, looking out into nowhere in particular.

"Not sure. They probably missed the train, knowing them." Caitlyn nodded in agreement. Ron and Harry were always causing trouble. Last year, as Caitlyn had mentioned, they nearly killed an ogre five times the size of them. Then one night they had just disappeared altogether. No one knew where the three friends were. The next day, it was announced that their Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Professor Quirrel, mysteriously died without any reasoning.

"I still think that they had something to do with it…" Caitlyn muttered to herself. Shiro laughed, not knowing what the girl was talking about. '_Talking to herself, poor girl'. I bet that's what he's thinking right now. _Caitlyn thought. _Note to self: never say things like that aloud…_

Soon after the sorting had ended (they had received several new students in their House, one including a highly suspicious looking girl named Luna Lovegood) they feasted on their dinner. Caitlyn laughed alongside with her roommate, Arietta Hartland, about what it would be like if Professor Snape was to become the Headmaster. Caitlyn was dying. She couldn't possibly imagine it, and if it ever did happen then the world will be cursed and she'll force herself to drop out of school.

"Caitlyn, you can't possibly do that! What will your parents ever think of you?" Arietta said before sipping a mouthful of pumpkin juice.

"My dear friend, have you ever heard of the spell 'obliviate'?" Caitlyn said, as if were so obvious. Arietta gasped.

"You can't! That's too dangerous! They won't remember you at all! Where will you live?" Caitlyn shrugged.

"Well, I could always go to the Weasley's house."

"Why would you ever want to do that?"

"Well, I could always go to the Ueda's house."

"Why would you ever want to do that?" Once again, Caitlyn shrugged, taking a bite of her potatoes.

"They both just seem like fun families to live with," she said after swallowing. Arietta just stared at her, then turned away to talk to a sixth-year girl sitting across from her. Caitlyn sighed. How come she didn't have that many friends?

How come all the friends she did have were younger than her?

How come she couldn't seem to get a boyfriend? Fred Weasley came to mind, and she blushed.

How come she couldn't just be normal?


	4. Chapter 4

"No way, McGonagall would OWN Professor Sprout in a duel!" Gaia exclaimed, buttoning up her silky pajama top. Catherin shook her head, squirming into her light blue, lacy nightgown.

"McGonagall is too old. Yeah, Professor Sprout is squatty, but I'd say she- alright, why are we talking about this?" The blonde girls laughed, falling backward onto their four poster beds. Gaia groped her sheets in search of Glace, while Catherin shot upright and stared at her friend with gleaming eyes. "Let's talk about something IMPORTANT."

"Like what?" Gaia asked without looking up.

Catherin grinned mischievously. "Boys, of course!"

Gaia paused, completely oblivious to the fact that her hand was right on top of her ferret's tail. She quickly shook her head, blushing slightly. "No way. I know what boy you wanna talk about, and I SO don't want to go there."

Catherin pouted. "Oh, alright, we won't talk about," her tone turned airy, "Satoshi."

Gaia flinched at the sound of his name, as if he was the Dark Lord. "We could talk about other peoples' love lives, though…"

Catherin twirled her finger in her hair. "Nonexistent love lives, that is. Let's begin with my sister, shall we?"

Plopping Glace on her lap, Gaia grinned. "Ooh, that sounds interesting… Does Caitlyn even like anybody?"

Catherin nodded animatedly. She motioned for Gaia to lean closer, and whispered, "Fred Weasley."

"Oy, I don't know him personally, but I hear he's real hilarious… Besides, twin plus twin equals ADORABLENESS!" she declared.

"On the train, Fred said he- ready for this?- CALLS HER! Boy, I never knew Cait's face could turn so red… It was bloody adorable!"

Gaia blinked. "I thought you hated to say 'bloody'?"

Catherin giggled, once again running her fingers through her hair. "Well, Satoshi cusses all the time, so I need to expand my vocabulary."

"Oh Merlin," Gaia groaned. She had been hoping to go a while without hearing about Satoshi. Oh, how she loathed him… She felt her heart constrict around itself as she thought this. _I do NOT hate him… It isn't possible to hate Satoshi Ueda, _she reminded herself.

Frowning, Catherin quickly slid under her sheets. "Well, we have a long day ahead of us… First day of lessons and all… Good night, mate."

Gaia nodded, climbing under her own covers in a daze. "Good night… See you in the morning," she replied airily.

"I swear, Professor Snape gets more and more bitter every year," Gaia moaned.

"He IS such a cuddly teddy bear," mused Catherin. She, Gaia, and Caitlyn all laughed. Suddenly, though, Catherin frowned. "He's tried to get Satoshi expelled, you know. Multiple times, too."

Gaia felt as if she'd been soaring through the air, and then abruptly crashed into a wall. She knew talking about Satoshi shouldn't bother her, he really wasn't such a bad guy… Plus stories about him always tended to be interesting… But still, she felt the grin slide off her face and her chest tighten slightly.

"The nerve of him!" Catherin continued huffily, sitting down on a bench and crossing her arms and legs. Gaia and Caitlyn sat on either side of her. "Yes, Satoshi is a troublemaker, but expulsion is going too far! Half- no, MORE than half- of the school would be devastated if he left! Everyone loves Satoshi!"

"Not everyone," Gaia muttered.

"What was that?" Caitlyn asked innocently. Gaia got to her feet, scooping up her bag. "Nothing… I'll see you guys later." With that, she ran off, leaving the twins to stare at her blankly.

Gaia soon came upon Konata, who was strolling along the lake with Blaze and Shiro. "Mind if I hang out with you guys?" she asked, adjusting her glasses.

Konata blinked, appearing slightly taken aback. "Of course! Well, er, it's fine with me at least…" She glanced at her companions.

"The more, the merrier," Shiro said with a smile. Blaze just shrugged, grinning very, VERY slightly.

The four had barely engaged in conversation when a group consisting of 5 fourth boys approached the from behind. Those boys were Fred & George Weasley, Lee Jordan, Jeffrey Knumlach, and Satoshi Ueda himself. "Hey there baby brother!" he chimed happily, wrapping one arm around Shiro's neck and roughly messing up his hair with the other. "The guys and I were wondering if you and your lady friends would want to hang."

Jeffrey turned to Shiro's "lady friends" and winked: Konata blushed and looked at the ground sheepishly; Blaze was totally unfazed; Gaia's eyes drifted away from him. She could feel the pounding of her heart all the way in her head. Satoshi was standing _right there_… _'Say no, Shiro… Please say no…' _she pleaded in her head.

"Sure, I guess. You girls wanna come?" Shiro responded, smoothing out his hair. Konata gave a sharp yet timid nod, while Blaze simply said "Sounds good." Gaia felt multiple pairs of eyes turn on her; her face flushed, and her heartbeat increased.

"I can't… Busy. Ferret, needs me… Needs food… Homework, lots of homework… 'Bye!" she exclaimed hurriedly. Blushing even more furiously, she bolted away from the group. She felt tears brim up in her eyes as she made her way into the castle. She kept her head down as she ran all the way to the Hufflepuff common room, still not even looking up as she entered her dorm. "If I react like that every time I see him, I'm bloody screwed," she cried, burying her face in a pillow.


	5. Chapter 5

Caitlyn rushed down the stairs, her bag over her shoulder. She moved her legs quickly, trying desperately not to trip over her own feet and fall face-first down the stairs.

"Oy, Caitlyn!" Arietta caught up to her, racing down the stairs as well. "Why are you rushing?"

"Well, we are going to be late for our first class of the day!" Caitlyn huffed, whipping her head around to face Arietta.

"I-it's still breakfast time, Caitlyn." Caitlyn pursed her lips, relaxed her shoulders, and threw her head back as she walked out the door and into the corridor.

"I don't care; if we don't eat breakfast then we will be starving. So we will sneak down to the kitchen and have the house elves give us food; yes, they will do that. Therefore, because we snuck to the kitchen, we will be late for our first class." Arietta just stared at her with her hazel eyes, but then shrugged and walked away. Caitlyn cursed under her breath. "Why do I have to be so strange?"

"I don't think you are strange." A high, airy voice said. Caitlyn turned around to see a young first-year girl with long, straggly blond hair that reached her waist.

"You're Luna Lovegood." Caitlyn said, staring at the girl. Luna nodded.

"So you've heard of me?" She said, her voice still sounding a bit…out there. Caitlyn smiled slightly.

"No, I just pay attention during the Sorting." Caitlyn said. Luna grinned.

"You have a good aura surrounding you." The girl said. Caitlyn's eyes widened. Aura…? What did this young little first-year mean? Luna caught Caitlyn's confused look and said calmly, "I just mean that you seem nice." Caitlyn instantly calmed down. Okay, so this girl wasn't as crazy as she had first anticipated. The two girls continued to walk down the corridors to the Great Hall, and Caitlyn learned this girl wasn't as strange as rumors made her sound.

Once again, I'm becoming friends with a younger student. What's my deal? Caitlyn thought. She sat down at the Ravenclaw table with Luna at her left side, and when Shiro came, he sat down at her right. She ate silently, not saying a word the whole time. Until, that is, Catherin came running up to her.

"Oh, Caitlyn dear! I have someone I would like you to meet!" She chimed. Caitlyn turned her head slightly to look at her twin. Behind Catherin and peering around her shoulder was a tall girl (a few inches taller than the twins) with wavy, dirty blond hair and dark purple glasses. She waved with her fingers.

"Hullo," She said softly. Caitlyn smiled.

"Well, any friend of my sister's is a friend of mine." Caitlyn said.

"I'm her roommate, Gaia Robertson." Gaia said. Caitlyn cocked her head and turned to Catherin.

"Catherin, how come I've never met Gaia until now?" she said.

"Well, Gaia and I weren't really close until the end of last year after-" Catherin stopped what she was saying in the middle of sentence when Gaia glanced at her with wide eyes. "Never mind. Besides, you have already met her. We were with her the other day in the hall…" Hah, for three seconds before the girl had run off blushing madly. Caitlyn pondered her thoughts. Had Catherin ever mentioned something during the summer that was so crazy that Caitlyn didn't believe?

"Last night we were just talking about something…something…interesting." Gaia said, with a hint of mischievous attitude in her eyes.

"Oh?" Caitlyn said, cocking her head.

"Yes, you see, we talked about people's love lives…" Caitlyn's eyes widened slightly. Fred popped up instantly in her thoughts, and her cheeks turned pink. Catherin and Gaia smirked. Gaia leaned in close to Caitlyn's ear and whispered,

"Is it true that you like Fred Weasley?" She pulled away, smiling from ear to ear. Caitlyn slowly put her fork down beside her plate.

"Maybe. If I did, would it be so bad?" She said calmly, her face still burning with embarrassment. Gaia shook her head.

"No. Personally, I think two twins dating is absolutely adorable!" She squealed. Caitlyn shot her a look that could've made the sun explode right then and there.

"We aren't ever going to date. You know that from personal experience that the love of your life doesn't love you back." She snapped. Gaia's eyes widened.

"W-what? Who told-"

"Oh please, everyone knows that you and Satoshi Ueda dated for three days, then he dumped you for some brunette from Ravenclaw. And I happen to know that because that brunette was my roommate, Arietta." Gaia shrank back. She lowered her head slightly and Caitlyn instantly regretted what she had just said. "I'm sorry," she muttered.

"Caitlyn…" Catherin sighed.

"I just cannot believe you told her that I liked Fred!" Caitlyn exclaimed.

"I'm sorry, it was just so interesting on the train-"

"And how did you even find out that I liked him?" Caitlyn said, quite outraged.

"Isn't it obvious? Your face turns so red whenever you are around him!" Catherin said, placing her hands on her hips.

"Well, it could be George that I like."

"But it's not, you just admitted that you liked Fred…"

"UGH!" Caitlyn threw her hands up into the air. Catherin snickered.

"You're in love, Caitlyn!" She taunted. Gaia widened her eyes slightly and opened her mouth as if to try to stop Catherin from her taunting, but she quickly closed her mouth. Instead, she looked sympathetically at Caitlyn. Caitlyn put her chin in her hands and sighed. With Catherin knowing who she liked, it was going to get around the school really fast.

As if to prove her point, Ginny Weasley (whom of which had just come to the school as a first year) appeared at Caitlyn's side. "Hello! You're Caitlyn, correct?" The young redhead girl said. Caitlyn nodded slowly. "You like my brother, Fred, correct?" Caitlyn whipped around, shot Catherin a look, turned back to Ginny, sighed, and nodded again very slowly. Ginny smiled mischievously. "Well, I'm just here to tell you that he just happens to like you back."

Catherin just couldn't stop laughing.

"He said he met some cute girl named Caitlyn Lumbach on the train and that he reckons he'll ask her out sometime this year." Ginny continued, ignoring Catherin. "So I would just watch out for Fred if I were you; he might want to talk to you." Caitlyn smiled nervously and nodded.

"Um, yeah. Okay." She said, shaking her head slightly. Ginny smiled kindly and left without another word.

Catherin was still laughing.

"Oh…Merlin, looks like you're going to get your first boyfriend!" She said between gasps of air.

"He…he likes me back," Caitlyn muttered.

"Yes, because he didn't say that you were the cute one and that he called you on the train the other day, Caitlyn." Catherin said sarcastically. Gaia nudged her.

"Let's go before she hexes you or something," She said softly. Catherin turned to her, shocked that she was pulling her away from teasing her sister. But she pouted and let her shoulders fall.

"Fine," she said, and with that the two girls walked away. Caitlyn pushed her eggs around her plate.

"Those girls aren't very nice to you, are they?" Luna said, suddenly jumping into the conversation. Caitlyn scowled.

"She only gets that way when she talks about my love life," she said with a roll of her blue eyes.

"She shouldn't treat you that way, nonetheless." Luna said, looking very serious.

"Bloody heck, she's my sister. It's her job to tease me." Luna's expression didn't change.

"I'm an only child, so I don't know what it's like to have a sibling." Caitlyn cocked her head.

"Did your mother not want to have any more children?" she said. Now Luna's expression changed. But it changed to a sad one that would make a homeless man give a child his lollipop.

"She passed away when I was nine." She said, not looking away from Caitlyn, but Caitlyn herself looked down at her plate to avoid that gaze Luna was giving her.

"Blimey…" Caitlyn muttered. "I'm sorry. I didn't know."

"It's alright. I'm quite used to it." Luna shut her eyes and smiled slightly, as if she was going off in dream-land.

"Right…Um, we should…uh…get to class…" Caitlyn muttered. She stood up quietly and waved to Luna, whose eyes were still closed. She walked quickly down the aisles of the Great Hall, trying desperately to stay away from the Hufflepuff table. She just wanted to ignore her sister. What was she thinking, telling some girl that Caitlyn barely knew about her crush? Her shoes' clicking echoed through the empty corridor as she walked up a flight of stairs. "I am not going to even look at him, much less talk to him…" Caitlyn muttered, referring to Fred. She sighed and stopped in her tracks. But she suddenly giggled.

That wasn't possible. She was madly in love with him, even though he probably wasn't in love with her. She heard a distant sound of hundreds of kids exiting the Great Hall, and taking that as her sign, she ran up the stairs and into the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom. She took her seat silently, staring at the front of the room. A man was sitting at the desk, smiling widely with brilliantly white teeth. His bright blue eyes glimmered, and Caitlyn wondered for a slip second if he was wearing colored contacts. His blonde hair was wavy and framed his gentle face, and Caitlyn's first impression was that this man was a bit conceited. She smiled, a bit nervous, at him. "Hello, Miss…"

"Caitlyn Lumbach,"

"Miss Lumbach. You seem ready to learn." He said a bit too happily. Caitlyn laughed nervously.

"Ah, yes…Right." She said. She heard laughter outside of her door, and knew that Marietta Edgecombe and Cho Chang were right outside the door. Sure enough, the two girls entered the room and sat at the table in front of where Caitlyn was sitting. They turned around and smiled at her. Marietta placed her chin in her hands and giggled.

"So, Caitlyn, we heard some interesting news." She said, looking briefly at Cho. "Is it true that you like Fred Weasley from Gryffindor?" Caitlyn's eyes widened. She tossed her hair back.

"I don't know what you're talking about." She said haughtily. Marietta giggled.

"You are head over heels, I bet." She laughed, once again peering at Cho, who was smiling slightly, but not as much as she herself was. Caitlyn's head instinctively went down into her palms so that her hair covered her face. She shook her head slightly.

"How is this getting around the school so fast?" She muttered. "It's only the first day and already people know I like him." Someone sat down in the seat next to her. She saw a long strand of chocolate brown hair and knew it was Arietta. She looked up. "People know, Arietta. They know."

Arietta grinned. "Know what? That you are madly in love with the Weasley twin?" Caitlyn glared at her.

"Yeah, that." She sighed. Arietta laughed a laugh that sounded a bit evil. Caitlyn looked at her as if she had grown another head.

"Blimey, Arietta..." Arietta's eyes widened. There was a rumor going around the school (it's been going on for years) that Arietta's parents were Death Eaters. Anything that refered to her being chaotic, scary, evil, or a demon made her angry. Caitlyn was the only one in the whole school that could actually confirm that this was true. She would just never admit it to anyone. That was one of the reasons Satoshi had broken up with her after just a week of dating; the rumor had begun. Caitlyn remembered that day as something she would never forget. Arietta was so depressed; but not too depressed since she hadn't actually liked Satoshi back; and she didn't understand why Satoshi had broken up with her. Caitlyn, of course, had heard about the rumor from Padma Patil, who heard it from her sister Pavarti Patil, who heard it from her best friend Lavender Brown, who is the Gossip Queen of her year. Padma, Pavarti, and Lavender were in the year below Caitlyn, same as Shiro. As much as she hated Lavender, she couldn't help but feel sorry for her. All that hair dye must've gotten to the poor girl's head.

Rumor also has it that Lavender dyes her hair blonde. It looks too perfect, the perfect shade, the perfect style; so people just assumed it.

Rumors fly around Hogwarts so quickly, it's a wonder how people don't know that Ron Weasley is destined for Hermione Granger. Everyone always suspects Harry and Hermione to end up together, but Caitlyn belives otherwise. Opposites attract, right? This is why Caitlyn secretly thought she and Fred were perfect for each other. Not just because she liked him, but because they were complete opposites. Caitlyn couldn't think of a thing that they had in common except mabye that they both had identical twins.

Caitlyn sat in silence, lost in her thoughts. She heard muffled voices outside the door, and knew that the Ravenclaw boys were right outside the door. They all came in, with smirks on their faces. They took their seats in such a reckless manner, Caitlyn knew her mother would've murdered them. The man at the front of the room finally got up from his chair and smiled again with the too-perfect teeth. "Hello, my name is Gilderoy Lockhart, but you may call me Professor Lockhart. I will be teaching you Defense Against the Dark Arts, young students." Caitlyn smirked. So this was the famous Gilderoy Lockhart? And he was teaching them this dangerous yet exhilerating class? The nerve of the man.

With a flick of his wand, instructions appeared on the front blackboard. "Please read chapter one, and take notes as you are reading. We will be performing the spell tomorrow." He said, smiling. Caitlyn peered at Arietta, who shrugged and opened her book. Caitlyn looked down at the table in front of her, and looked at the book that was sitting idley on the surface. She slowly lifted the cover to the first page, which presented the table of contents. She sighed and flipped the pages to chapter one, and began reading. Vampires are magnificent creatures... Caitlyn read. And even though she was reading with her eyes, the information wasn't processing through to her head. She re-read sentences several times before realizing what she was doing. She placed her head in her palms and groaned. She was never going to finish this chapter. She slowly raised her hand.

"Yes?" Professor Lockhart said, smiling at her.

"What if we don't finish the chapter before class ends?" She said softly. Lockhart twisted his face into a puzzling look, but then responded.

"Read it for homework." He said briefly before turning back to whatever he was doing on his desk. Caitlyn nodded and looked back down at the page. By sucking a human's blood, the vampire is enabled to live longer... Blah, blah, Who cares? Caitlyn couldn't concentrate. She kept thinking about what Ginny had said earlier, "Well, I'm just here to tell you that he just happens to like you back." Caitlyn giggled slightly. Arietta suddenly passed her a small, folded piece of paper. It read,

What are you smiling about?

Caitlyn looked around cautiously, but replied,

Nothing...I just read something funny.

Arietta read the note and mouthed "oh" at Caitlyn. Caitlyn could feel a blush rising to her cheeks. If people were going to catch her floating off in dreamland, she was in trouble. She tried to concentrate on the book once again, but she couldn't. The final bell had rung, and everyone was hustling to get the heck out of there. Caitlyn hurried down the stairs. "Ugh, I have Double Potions next..." She muttered to herself as she made her way down to the dungeons. But a flash of red in her perifrial vision stopped her. The twins were standing sirectly across from her when she spun around, and Fred Weasley was making his merry little way towards her. Caitlyn clutched her books to her chest and looked down to her feet. Her eyes were wide, she knew, and her face was probably red.

"Oy, Caitlyn!" Fred called to sighed, but forced a smile and lifted her head.

"How do you know I'm not Catherin?" She asked slyly. Fred waved a hand at her.

"Because you are cute. I would've never thought that of Catherin." Caitlyn didn't know if she should've felt honored or highly offended that he had called her sister ugly, practically. Satoshi, George, and Jeffrey were all standing a good several feet away, smirks on their faces.

"Oh, right. I guess I could say the same about you,"

"Why would you think I was Catherin?" Fred said, smiling brilliantly. Caitlyn giggled and swatted at his arm.

"I mean with you and George!" She said. But she knew in her heart that Fred knew perfectly well what she had meant. He was just being a flirt.

"Hey, wanna go out with me?" He said, winking at her. Caitlyn felt the heat raising to her face.

"I-um...y-yes!" She stuttered. Fred had a look crossed between relief and success on his face.

"Cool. We're a couple!" he claimed, and trotted off to give his friends victorious high-fives. Caitlyn stared after him.

"Blimey, I think I'm going out with the guy of my dreams." She muttered, feeling her cheek with the one hand that wasn't holding her books. Oh yes, dreams do come true.


	6. Chapter 6

One morning, Gaia was met with quite a strange scene when walking into the Hufflepuff girls' lavatory. Catherin was staring in a mirror, gripping the sink- nothing _too _unusual. The odd thing was what she was doing. "Bloody hell, you damn bastard… You're such an arsehole," she was muttering.

Gaia stared at her blankly, wondering if she hadn't woken up yet. "Catherin… WHAT are you doing?"

Catherin turned around, her expression brightening. "Oy, 'morning Gaia! I was just practicing cussing… I'll need to, if I'm to ever date Satoshi," she said airily.

"You're too set on him!" Gaia sighed irritably. She shifted a bit before loosening up and shuffling over to her roommate. "But, you know… He doesn't curse that often in one sentence. You have to spread it out some…"

Catherin's eyes sparkled. "Oh! Thanks for the tip! I'll remember that. And, I'm sorry I'm so hung up on him, what with him breaking your heart and all…" Gaia flinched, but Catherin didn't notice. "Maybe you'd take my crush easier if you found something to get your mind off of him," she suggested.

Gaia chewed on the inside of her cheek absent-mindedly. "We'll see."

After completing her morning routine, Gaia entered the common room in order to head off to breakfast. Before she could reach the portrait hole, however, she was stopped by someone tapping on her shoulder. She turned to see a freckled boy with longish, blonde hair and bright hazel eyes. He was immediately recognized as Pauley McNiffle: a fellow third year Hufflepuff.

"You're Gaia Robertson, aren't you?"

Gaia simply nodded.

"Wonderful! I've always admired you… Why don't you go out with me?" Pauley exclaimed in a naïve sort of way.

_Well hello something, _Gaia thought, blushing slightly. It seemed almost too perfect for a boy to ask her out so suddenly, but she didn't give it a second thought. "I… Sure…!"

Pauley clasped his hands together, grinning from ear to ear. "How peculiar! I was told you'd never say yes… Well, I'm flattered and overjoyed you did. I'll see you around!" And he disappeared out of the portrait hole.

Word of the new Hufflepuff couple spread like wildfire throughout Hogwarts. It wasn't a terribly interesting rumor, though, for neither Pauley nor Gaia were all that popular or special. What was more appealing was talk of an upcoming visit to Hogsmeade village. This would be the first time the Lumbachs, Gaia, and the other third years would be going. From what they'd heard, it was to be highly anticipated.

Gaia was mildly confused that Catherin did not make plans to go with her, but didn't think much of it. After all, Pauley invited her to hang out with him. Though they'd been together for a short amount of time, Gaia already knew she regretted accepting to be Pauley's girlfriend. He was a Muggle-born, which normally wouldn't have meant anything to Gaia, except that he found nearly everything in the wizard world "peculiar." Still, Gaia refused to dump him: he was a nice boy in a way, and he certainly took her mind off of Satoshi.

"My, this place looks so similar to shopping places back in the Muggle world… How peculiar! I'm sure the items sold are MUCH different though." This was the first thing Pauley said upon entering Hogsmeade, his gloved hand entwined with Gaia's fingers. Gaia was relieved of coming up with a response when a familiar feminine voice called her name.

Catherin ran up to her, wearing a smile so large it had to be hurting her face. Shortly behind her was Caitlyn, hugging Fred's arm with a dreamy expression on her face. Gaia felt as if her heart plummeted out of her chest when she saw that not far behind them was George, Jeffrey, and… Satoshi. The sight of him made Gaia grip Pauley's hand even harder; if it hurt him he said nothing.

"Guess. WHAT! No don't guess, 'cause I'll tell you! Fred invited Caitlyn to be part of their group, right? And then, Satoshi said there couldn't just be ONE of the Lumbach twins in there crew, so now I'M part of their group!" Catherin explained ecstatically, her voice cracking often. Gaia tried to respond- really she did- but her voice box just wouldn't work.

Catherin's smile faltered as she picked up on Gaia's change of expression. "Oh, don't worry, you're still our friend! You always will be." She took a hop-step forward and hugged her, as if to prove her sincerity.

"Why don't you and your lovely little boyfriend come with us to the Three Broomsticks?" Satoshi offered cheerfully. His naturally seducing voice made Gaia's stomach turn and throat tighten, so she couldn't even bring herself to say "no."

"Do you mean it? That sounds simply fantastic! Yes, Gaia and I will be there, thank you!" chimed Pauley. Gaia desperately yearned for an Invisibility Cloak, or the ability to Disapparate. Nevertheless, she dragged herself along with the others.

The entire way, Pauley rambled on and on about the Muggle world. He babbled things like "Children would NEVER be allowed in pubs, let alone allowed to buy things from them all by themselves, in the Muggle world," and "Using broomsticks for transportation? SO peculiar," as well as "Butterbeer? Oh, that does not sound good. It's illegal for people our age to drink beer… Unless, of course, it's alcohol free… Now why would they call it butter_beer_ if it has no alcoholic effect? Peculiar, if you ask me."

Gaia didn't even realize she'd planted her face against the table after listening to him for only 2 minutes.

"Hey, so, have you guys heard about the Chamber of Secrets?" Jeffrey inquired loudly as Pauley began to discuss the similarities and differences of wizards' quills and Muggles' quills. Gaia could tell she wasn't the only one who was relieved to have a change of subject.

"Of course we have, dude! And I gotta say, I envy that monster… I've wanted to pull something on that cat of Filch's since my first year!" Satoshi exclaimed.

Caitlyn drained the last drop of butterbeer out of her mug and set it on the table, licking her lips. She narrowed her eyes slightly. "I don't think it's a MONSTER, Satoshi. That's just a silly rumor."

Fred drummed his fingers on his girlfriend's shoulder. "You're lucky you're cute, because I totally think it's a monster." George nodded sharply; Caitlyn blushed lightly. "Well, yes, I suppose it's a possibility…" she said in a small voice. Fred laughed and gently pressed his lips against the top of her head, which made her face go crimson.

Though it took a lot of willpower, Gaia actually stayed with Pauley for a good amount of time: 3 weeks and 2 days. After she'd been with him for a week, Catherin started voicing her opinion on the matter.

"I know I should break up with him, but… It'd feel like kicking a puppy. Like, a puppy that's really annoying, but it's still a puppy so you don't wanna hurt it…" Gaia sighed during one of Catherin's attempts to convince Gaia to dump Pauley. Catherin opened her mouth to speak, but Gaia quickly interrupted with, "Plus he gets my mind off of Satoshi."

Catherin loosened up a bit, her mouth opening and closing like a landed fish. "But, there's… There's other guys you could date! _Better _guys!" she finally managed to say.

Gaia sighed again, falling back onto her bed and narrowly avoiding squashing her ferret. "I know, I know. I just… I know."

And then, one day, Gaia finally lost her patience. Pauley was halfway through saying "How peculiar" for about the eighth time that day when Gaia stood up, her books tumbling off her lap, and she shrieked, "This isn't working!"

Pauley blinked cluelessly. "What's not working? This whole studying together thing? Because I think it's working out wonderful, quite peculiar that we think so differently."

Gaia felt like her skin was boiling, and could feel her heart pounding all the way in her temple. "We certainly ARE thinking differently. Pauley, I'm SORRY, but I can't be with you anymore! You're just… UGH! Good-bye." She heatedly threw her things in her bag and stormed off toward her dorm, leaving Pauley sitting there dumbstruck.

"It's certainly about time!" Catherin exclaimed at breakfast the next morning. Though she still had a headache and was pulsing with frustration, Gaia couldn't help but feel guilt when she realized Pauley was nowhere to be seen. She stirred her oatmeal in a daze, at a loss for words.

"I hate to see you alone though…" Catherin frowned, but a light bulb quickly went off in her head. A group of Hufflepuff boys that were evenly between cool and nerdy passed by them; Catherin pounced off her bench and slid right up to them. "Do any of you want to date my best friend?" She pointed at Gaia, who immediately turned beet red.

The boys stared at her like she was insane. "I uh… We, er, don't know her…" one of them muttered. He ushered his friends to the farthest end of the table.

Catherin pouted and sat down heavily beside Gaia. She gave a little shrug and returned to her breakfast. "It was worth a shot." Gaia shoved her bowl away and buried her face in her arms.

"No, Catherin. No it wasn't."


	7. Chapter 7

"I reckon that Pauley kid was a bit annoying," Fred announced to Caitlyn one day when they were out by the Quidditch pitch. Caitlyn nodded; she knew that whatever she was thinking he would actually say it out loud.

"Everything was 'so peculiar'." She said, sighing. Honestly, she was quite pleased that Gaia had broken up with him a few days ago. Now at least she wouldn't have to hear all his "in the Muggle world" nonsense. Fred's face suddenly lit up.

"Hey, you want to play a little three one three Quidditch?" Caitlyn giggled slightly.

"Fred, there are only two of us…" Fred smirked, and then nodded his head to the left, where a few other Gryffindors were getting ready to scrimmage against each other. Caitlyn nodded, and they walked up to the four. Among them was Katie Bell, Oliver Wood, Ron Weasley (Caitlyn had asked what he was doing out here and his ears turned a nice shade of dark red), and Harry Potter. Caitlyn's heart raced. If they were going three against three, she knew Harry would take the part of Seeker. With her being Seeker as well, she would have to go against the best Seeker in the school. Fred placed his hand on her shoulder in a comforting way as if he knew exactly what she was thinking.

"Hey, are you guys going to play two on two?" Oliver and Ron both nodded. "Cool, can we join you?" Katie giggled and Oliver smiled.

"Sure! Fred, you'll be our Chaser, I'll be the Keeper, and Harry will be the Seeker. Katie, you'll be on the other team as the Chaser, Caitlyn will be the Seeker, and Ron will be the Keeper. Got it?" Everyone nodded. "Alright then," Oliver picked up the box of balls and walked to the center of the field. Caitlyn nudged Fred.

"I haven't got my Nimbus!" She whispered urgently.

"Don't worry, we aren't allowed to play with any 'new and improved'" Fred made air quotes, "brooms. Oliver says it isn't fair for the other players in a scrimmage, but it's perfectly fine when in a game." Caitlyn laughed as Fred opened up the extra broom cabinet and tossed her one, taking one for himself as well. "These aren't the best brooms in the world…" He muttered, taking one look at his.

"So are these brooms anything like my Nimbus at all? Or is there some different control stuff to it?" Caitlyn said. She already knew perfectly well that each broom was controlled the same, but she always loved Fred's little "life lessons" so she sometimes asked stupid questions on purpose.

"Oh, no, it's really easy! Here, just throw the broom on the ground." Fred threw his broom to the ground, and Caitlyn smirked, following his lead. "Now say 'up' and the broom will fly into your hands!" Caitlyn laughed and put her hands on her hips as Fred's broom flew up into his hand.

"I think I know perfectly well that I don't have to say 'up' to pick up a broomstick, Fred." Her broom flew up just in time when she said 'up', only to hit her wrist; hard. Caitlyn shrieked, for she was not expecting the impact of the wood against her wrist. Fred started laughing and laughing.

"YOU SHOULD'VE SEEN YOUR FACE!" He said between fits of laughter. "C'mon, Caitlyn, this is first year flying basics!" Caitlyn couldn't help but double over in laughter at her own ridiculousness.

"WOW! I failed!" She squealed. But what really made her freak out was when Fred placed one hand on her back, one under her knees, and carried her like a baby. She felt her face go crimson. He kissed her forehead lightly. She giggled. "If you drop me and I fall on my arse, I'll hex you!" She shrieked.

Fred laughed. "Tsk, tsk, don't swear…" He tapped her nose with his forefinger. He slightly lowered his arms as if he _was_ going to drop her, and Caitlyn's eyes widened as she reached her arms around his neck. She glared at him through slit eyes.

"DON'T DO THAT, FRED WEASLEY, OR I WILL JINX YOU!" Suddenly Harry and Ron came around the corner only to see this pretty little sight. Ron's face went red at the sight of his brother carrying a girl who wasn't in the family.

"Er…come one, you guys…we are going to start in a few minutes…" Harry stuttered. Fred grinned at the two at first, but then looked down at Caitlyn and smirked.

"Alright," He said simply, and with that he threw Caitlyn over his shoulder like a sack.

"Whoa!" she cried. She stared at the moving ground below her. From behind her, she heard Ron muttering, "I feel so sorry for her…" Fred walked onto the Quidditch pitch and set Caitlyn down on her feet so she could walk by herself. Oliver opened the box, took out the Quaffle and the Snitch, and Caitlyn and Harry eyed it closely as it hovered around their heads. The Bludgers in the box still shook, but Oliver closed the lid. Oliver saw Caitlyn's confused look.

"We play Bludger free," he claimed. "Alright, everyone, mount your brooms!" Caitlyn threw her left leg over the stick and hovered above the ground for a few seconds, but then Oliver threw the Quaffle up in the air and the game began. Caitlyn raced to the top of the stadium, searching for the tiny gold ball. She heard someone zoom behind her, and Fred raced up to her.

"Just because you are my girlfriend doesn't mean I'm going to take it easy on you!" He laughed, flying away, snatching the Quaffle away from Katie, and scoring in one of the hoops. "TEN POINTS, CAITLYN, SUCK IT UP!" He laughed. Caitlyn shook her head, laughing. As she did so, she saw Harry suddenly zoom down to the ground and she followed his lead. Harry seemed to be concentrated on one thing; the Snitch that was only a foot away from reaching distance. Caitlyn sped up, getting closer to Harry every second. She was eventually right at his side, and she reached her hand towards the Snitch. Her fingers were inches away from it...she was going to get it!

"CAITLYN, I LOVE YOU!" Fred called in a joking manner. Unfortunately, this random outburst made Caitlyn lose her concentration and she faltered back, causing Harry to gain easy access to the Snitch, and catching it simply. Caitlyn touched down, dazed. She threw the broom down on the ground, walked up to Fred (whom of which had just landed, as well) and slapped his arm.

"FRED WEASLEY, what was that for?" She demanded, but Fred was nearly dying of laughter.

"Duh, so I could win!" Fred said with a flip of his hair. Caitlyn gasped.

"You are nothing but a cheat!" Caitlyn shrieked, but Fred immediately stopped laughing. His face went serious, and Caitlyn was almost shocked she had said something horrible that she didn't mean to say. Fred leaned down close to Caitlyn; nose to nose. Caitlyn closed her eyes, and swallowed. She could feel his warm breath tickling her face, and she slightly blushed.

"But that just makes you like me even more, doesn't it?" He whispered. Caitlyn opened her eyes and quickly looked at Ron, who looked about ready to die. Harry was beside him, looking just as awkward. Fred was still close to her, but he had closed his eyes.

_Oh, Merlin! Is he going to-_

Caitlyn thought, but her thoughts were answered, for just then Fred's lips had touched hers.

"C'mon, Harry…" Caitlyn heard Ron say. His voice cracked, and if Fred wasn't kissing her, she would've laughed. Caitlyn instinctively put her arms around Fred's neck. Fred pulled away slightly, but he picked her up like he did earlier and leaned in for another kiss; this time with her in his arms.

Fred carried her all the way back to the castle. Unfortunately, they got some rather rude looks from other students. Some people, as they were passing, actually muttered horrible names at them. One time Fred lost it and shouted, "She broke her ankle! I'm taking her to the hospital wing!" but that just earned him a few eye-rolls. Caitlyn did her best to fake excruciating pain to her ankle, but half the time she was giggling like a little school girl. Once Lavender Brown and her little friends came up to them and batted their eyelashes flirtatiously.

"You two are the TALK of the CENTURY! You are the cutest couple in the _entire_ school!" She squealed. Caitlyn nodded, Fred smiled, but just kept walking. When they reached the entrance to the Ravenclaw common room, Fred set her down on her feet. He kissed her on the cheek and watched her enter the common room. He stood in the corridor until the door closed, and walked off.

Meanwhile, in the Ravenclaw common room, Caitlyn leaned against the dark wood on the door and slid down until she was sitting on the floor. She hugged her knees to her chest and stared ahead into nothingness. "He kissed me…" She muttered, feeling her lips.


	8. Chapter 8

It seemed official that every time Gaia walked into a room with a mirror, her roommate was having strange conversations with her reflection. All of them, of course, about one sole topic- one sole _person, _really. One morning, Gaia walked in on the following:

"Catherin Ueda. _Mrs. _Catherin Ueda. Mrs. Satoshi Ueda. Mrs. _Catherin _Satoshi Ueda. Catherin and Satoshi Ueda. Satoshi and Catherin Ueda. Oh, blimey, they all sound so cute!" Catherin was squealing into her makeup mirror. This in itself struck Gaia as odd, for she wasn't aware that Catherin even OWNED a makeup mirror.

"You, my friend, are obsessed," she muttered, getting on her knees to search the floor for a quill she'd forgotten. "And since when do you wear makeup?" she added.

"Since today. Satoshi doesn't date ugly girls, right? And makeup makes you look older and prettier, _right? _So maybe he'll ask me out sooner if I start wearing some," she declared, lightly closing one eye so she could apply some blue eye shadow. Gaia sighed irritably, getting to her feet.

"Let me give you some MORE advice on Satoshi. He doesn't care that much about how pretty you are. I mean, I'm no beauty queen, and he dated me. As long as he deems a girl cute at the least, she qualifies to be his flavor of the week. And frankly, you're quite lovely."

Catherin's cheeks turned a light shade of pink, and she paused right in the middle of applying the eye shadow.

"I, well, thank you. That won't stop me from wearing it, though," she sputtered. Gaia shrugged, finally grasping her quill, and left the room.

Months passed without anything particularly big happening in the lives of Gaia and the Lumbach twins. Hogwarts itself, though, was gradually sliding into a state of panic. Muggle-borns and squibs were turning up petrified. This didn't affect our main heroines personally, until one unfortunate day in mid May.

"It seems so much quieter," Gaia noted one morning as they entered the Great Hall. It didn't take her very long to realize the lack of noise seemed to be coming from the Gryffindor table. The Weasley twins, Lee Jordan, and Jeffrey- four of the loudest people of the house- were sitting in silence, poking uninterestedly at their breakfast. Satoshi was nowhere to be seen.

"Caitlyn, dear sister? Where is-"

"Catherin's future hubby?" Gaia interrupted Catherin, a grin forming on her lips. Catherin's face immediately turned bright red, and her voice box seemed to momentarily stop working.

Caitlyn, it seemed, was putting on the same attitude as Satoshi's friends. "I'm not positive, but, Shiro is missing as well… Recall that their mother is a Squib, and the Basilisk has been targeting-"

Catherin cut off her twin with a quick distressed shriek. "You don't mean to say that… S-Satoshi has been _petrified!"_ Caitlyn nodded grimly.

"It may be so."

"Would it kill you to care that Shiro may have been too?" Gaia muttered, too quiet for anyone but herself to hear.

"I'm going to go ask your boyfriend," Catherin declared to Caitlyn. She headed off toward the Gryffindor table, but was beaten there by Professor McGonagall, tailed by a frightened looking Konata Verdent. They, however, were not approaching Satoshi's friends- they were walking up to Blaze Alexanders. "Please come with us to the hospital wing, Alexanders…" McGonagall said in a low voice. Immediately abandoning her breakfast, Blaze followed after the elderly woman.

"Luna? D'you have any idea where Shiro is?" Caitlyn asked nervously.

"Oh, haven't you heard? The poor boy and his brother have been petrified. They're in the hospital wing right now. While we're discussing them, Satoshi is an odd character, isn't he? Nothing like Shiro," responded the airy old dirty blonde casually. Caitlyn's hand flew to her mouth; Gaia's eyes widened behind her glasses. She didn't know Shiro too well, though she often heard Konata speaking incredibly highly of him. From the sounds of it, he was the last person to deserve being petrified.

The day dragged by uncomfortably. Gaia almost pushed the thought of Shiro and Satoshi to the back of her head, but seeing as Catherin spent her time staring into space with a worried expression, only opening her mouth to murmur "I hope he's okay…" this was difficult to manage.

On the way up to their dorm that night, Catherin grabbed Gaia by the arm. "Come to the hospital wing with me… I just have to visit him, and Caitlyn said she was going to do so tomorrow with Fred, the nerve, not coming with her own sister… Anyway, it'll just take a moment, I don't want to go alone…" she pleaded.

"Geez, Cath, I never said I wouldn't. Come on, let's go," Gaia told her with a slight grin. Catherin stared at her blankly for a few moments before wheeling toward the staircase leading to the hospital wing.

"It's late, so please make this visit a quick one," Madam Pomfrey told them a bit irritably once they entered the room. Catherin nodded, although she didn't take in the nurse's words: her bluish eyes were darting around the room in search of Satoshi. Deciding he was in the fifth bed to the right, she darted over and pulled back the curtains. Gaia followed close behind her, and she uttered a small gasp. The sight that greeted them was not a pretty one.

Had the girls not known better, they would have thought they were gazing at a realistic statue of Satoshi Ueda. His blue eyes, permanently widened in terror, had a sort of glossy look to them; his skin was pale; one arm seemed to be wrapped around an invisible person laying beside him, while the other was simply at his side. Very slowly, Catherin kneeled on the ground beside the bed. Shaking slightly, she reached out and brushed Satoshi's bangs away from his eyes. She gulped as she felt how unnaturally smooth and cold his forehead felt under her fingertips.

"Blimey, I…" She let out a precarious sigh, failingly attempting a smile. "I don't even know what to say. You poor thing… And your little brother, too, that monster sure has some nerve… If I could slay that thing, I would. Nobody hurts one of the Uedas- especially you- and gets away with it. I know you can't hear me, but… Even if all the heartbreaking you've done catches up to you, and everybody starts to hate you… Even if you reject me so hard you never speak to me again and I have to hide my face forever… I'll never lose faith in you. You're an awesome guy, Sato. You've done some crappy stuff… But you're an awesome guy." And with that, Catherin leaned over and pressed her lips against Satoshi's cheek, letting them linger there for a few moments before sitting back.

Gaia stood behind her, feeling a combination of touched, awkward, helpless, and baffled. That was the longest, most heartfelt think she'd ever heard Catherin say, and she'd heard her say a LOT of things. She stared at her friend as she sluggishly stroked Satoshi's hair, her forehead pressed against his arm. Was it possible that she wasn't just another crazed Satoshi Ueda fan girl like Gaia always took her to be? Could she be legitimately in _love_ with him? She felt her chest constrict and turn icy as she realized that if Satoshi never dumped her, she quite possibly would have given a speech very similar to the one Catherin had just delivered.

By June, Professor Sprout had raised enough mature Mandrakes to cure all the petrified students. Not only that, but Harry Potter had managed to kill the Basilisk. Naturally, this caused much talk, but let's not get into that- this isn't Harry's story!

Upon their return to the Great Hall one morning, the Ueda brothers were greeted by a broadly smiling Konata and Blaze. Each of them hugged Shiro tightly, exclaiming how glad they were that he was back.

"What, you don't care that I'M okay?" Satoshi remarked, grinning good-naturedly. The girls laughed and hugged him as well. Shortly after, they took Shiro and went off. The moment they were gone, the Lumbach twins, Gaia, and Satoshi's four best friends dashed over to speak to the older Ueda boy. "Alright, tell me: who came to visit me while I was a statue?" All of their hands shot up (Fred and Caitlyn competed to see whose hand could be raised highest).

"Catherin saw you _every day_," Jeffrey commented with a snide grin. Catherin looked both proud and ready to die on the spot.

"Did she now?" Satoshi turned his gaze upon the blonde Hufflepuff. "Well aren't you just sweet."

"Eh, I try." Satoshi laughed at Catherin's reply, making her heart skip a beat: one chime of his laugh could make anyone fall head over heels.

"You know what's strange, though, is that when I awoke, there was some pink, sparkly residue on my cheek," Satoshi stated cheerily once he'd calmed down. Catherin's ears abruptly burned red, and she dashed off to the Hufflepufff table. Whipping her mirror out of her pocket, she hastened to wipe the cotton candy flavored lip gloss off of her mouth.


	9. Chapter 9

"Catherin, are you wearing _makeup_?" Caitlyn asked on the train ride home. Her sister blushed and nodded slightly.

"Y-yes, of course I am! Haven't you ever noticed that I wear makeup…?" She stuttered. Caitlyn rolled her eyes and looked at the bright blue shade of eye shadow on Catherin's eye lids.

"Catherin, you have to wear, uh, not blue eye shadow." Catherin's eyes widened. Caitlyn sighed and reached into her bag, pulling out a makeup case. She held it up towards her sister. "Here, I'll show you how to make yourself look _good_ while wearing makeup." Catherin blinked. Gaia, who was sitting against the window, was smiling giddily at the twins. She adjusted her glasses and leaned forward.

"So, Caitlyn, where's Fred?" She said simply. Caitlyn's face turned crimson.

"Ah, er, he is in another compartment with his friends. He doesn't have to spend all his time with me, you know." Gaia nodded. Caitlyn got up and sat herself next to Catherin. She pulled out a small case of eye shadow from the bag, which was perched on her lap, and held out the eye shadow. "Use these colors, not the blue." She also pulled out a series of lip glosses which had never been opened. "I've never used these, but they'd look good on you. You can have them." Catherin was staring at her twin, aghast.

"R-really? I can have all this?" Catherin said in awe. Caitlyn nodded slowly and moved herself back to her normal seat and gazed out the window. The train was pulling into King's Cross station. "I'm sure glad that they canceled all the final exams." Catherin said slowly. Gaia's eyes lit up.

"And that pajama party in the Great Hall was really fun, too!" The three girls laughed, remembering how loopy their Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher was. Story had it he lost his memory when a memory charm backfired. The train stopped, and all the students unloaded, stepping onto the platform. Mr. and Mrs. Lumbach greeted their daughters happily and embraced them in a warm hug. The Snitch in Caitlyn's bag twitched, and she let the golden ball whiz around her head before snatching it from the air and shoving it back in the pouch. Caitlyn caught up to Fred, who was with George, Ron, Ginny, and Percy, and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Good-bye, Fred. I'll see you when school starts again," She said meekly, embarrassed to be acting this way in front of her's and Fred's parents. Mrs. Weasley, however, was glancing at Caitlyn and Fred quite proudly. She trampled over to her son and clapped him on the shoulder.

"Is this Miss Caitlyn Lumbach we've been hearing about?" She said beamishly. Caitlyn nodded and placed her small hand in Mrs. Weasley's, shaking it. "Oh, I must make you a sweater next Christmas, ooh!" She said excitedly. "What do you think, Fred? What color?" George was the one who answered the question.

"I think a nice teal would look marvelous on her." He said with a pondering look to his face. Mrs. Weasley gasped and nodded in her approval. Caitlyn blushed. Glancing around, she saw Satoshi and his family standing nearby. She took Catherin by the wrist and dragged her off with her while their own parents chatted with the Weasleys.

"Hello, Satoshi, Shiro." The two boys, who almost looked like twins themselves if not for the age and height difference, whipped their heads around to face the girls. Shiro had a bright smile on his face, while Satoshi almost looked a bit scared to see them. _Weird_, Caitlyn thought, _even for Satoshi._ While they were chatting, Caitlyn kept noticing Satoshi taking little glances at Catherin every once in a while, blushing slightly. They chatted for a while, hugged out their farewells, and Caitlyn and Catherin left to join their parents, who were impatiently waiting by the gate. While walking through the Leaky Cauldron, Caitlyn nudged Catherin in the ribcage.

"Did you notice what Satoshi was doing?" She whispered.

"Er, flirting? Talking? Being himself? All of the above?" Catherin muttered. Caitlyn shook her head, blonde hair whipping her cheeks.

"_Catherin, _he was _staring _at you. Blimey, you are so blind." Catherin's face immediately went a deep shade of red.

"H-he…he was _not_," She said, waving her hand at Caitlyn. Caitlyn nodded fiercely and shoved Catherin playfully.

"You've got a _lover_, Catherin!" Caitlyn teased. Catherin's eyes widened. Caitlyn leaned in and whispered to Catherin, "If you want me to, I can slip a love potion into his breakfast next year," Catherin glared at her sister.

"If a man falls in love with me, I want him to fall in love with me without love potions." Caitlyn sighed.

"Ah, bloody heck. I just wanted a chance to use the new one I got at Hogsmeade..." She murmured. Catherin looked stricken. Her sister was exactly like the twins ad Satoshi now!

"Dear, what has gotten into you?" She queried. As they all got into the car, Caitlyn propped her arm up on the door and smirked.

"And what, my sister, do you mean by that?" Mrs. Lumbach looked at her fourteen year old daughters.

"Caitlyn, she means that you are acting exactly like the eldest Ueda boy and the Weasley twins." She said softly, smiling. Caitlyn cocked her head, a mischievous glint in her teal eyes.

"Oh, and thanks for writing to us on our birthdays. Made us feel incredibly special." She said, with a hint of sarcasm in her voice. Mr. Lumbach looked at her through the rear-view mirror.

"Honey, we were in Egypt doing work. I'm sorry we couldn't write to you." Caitlyn and Catherin simultaneously waved their left hands at him.

"Sure you are," They said in unison, naturally sarcastic. Mrs. Lumbach, as usual, warned the girls about "playing that card" with them. Whenever she told them that, they knew she actually meant, "Stop talking and moving in unison, it's creeping me out!" Caitlyn and Catherin exchanged looks and rolled their eyes. But suddenly Caitlyn's eyes lit up.

"Mumsie, this summer, can we go to the Muggle bowling alley?" She said excitedly.

"Darling, I don't know. Perhaps we will, but with all the work for the Ministry your father and I have we may not be able to."

"But Mumsie, we're _fourteen_."

"Yeah, Mumsie, we're _fourteen_." Anthony Lumbach whipped his head around.

"Oh, so you want to go alone?" He questioned. The girls both shook their heads slowly.

"Of _course_ not, Daddy,"

"Of _course_ not," Catherin ticked off on her fingers all the people that would be coming. "I say we invite Fred, George, Arietta, Gaia, and perhaps Shiro and Satoshi." Caitlyn nodded quickly.

"Precisely! So...can we go, Daddy, Mumsie, pleeeeeeaaaaase, can we go?" Caitlyn pleaded. Mr. Lumbach turned back around.

"Sometime, if you schedule it with your friends," Mrs. Lumbach said slowly.

Caitlyn grabbed Catherin's wrists and very seriously said, "Promise me you won't snog Satoshi in front of us, okay?" Catherin's face turned as red as the Weasley's hair.

"I-I won't! Sato and I are only friends...Besides; I should be giving you and Fred that warning." Caitlyn laughed, nodding. She agreed with her twin; she wasn't going to snog Fred Weasley in front of them any time soon.

"You called him Sato!" Caitlyn wailed, laughing enthusiastically. Catherin crossed her arms.

"Of course I did, that's his nickname," She defended herself. Caitlyn stared at her. Was she really telling the truth, or was she twisting the truth into some lie? The car pulled into the driveway of their large one-story house and Caitlyn pushed open the door on her side, stepping out and spreading her arms wide, feeling the warmth of the summer breeze.

"I LOVE SUMMER!" She shouted, even though it was late at night and some people were probably asleep. Caitlyn popped the trunk, dragging her case out of it and into the living room of the house. She knelt by the fireplace, inserting the little key into the hole on the wall, and relaxed by the fire.

"Caitlyn, dear, it's summer! What do you need a fire going for?" Mrs. Lumbach said, wrapping an apron around her waist. Caitlyn rolled her eyes, propping her feet up on the coffee table.

"It's just relaxing, Mum." She said, apparently in an annoyed tone.

"Sometimes I wonder how you didn't get into Slytherin," her mother sighed, "Your grandfather was, and you seem to act a lot like him." Caitlyn made a small sound between a squeak and a gasp; she never told her mother a very important chunk of her life: during her Sorting, the Sorting Hat had almost put her in Slytherin.

***Three years ago***

An eleven year old Caitlyn was shaking with fear, for her Sorting was directly after this student's. "HUFFLEPUFF!" The Sorting Hat shouted, and Caitlyn's stomach gave a startling lurch. She clenched her eyes shut, and Professor McGonagall said her name loud and clear for everyone to hear. Caitlyn swallowed a huge lump that was forming in her throat, and instead put a triumphant look on her face. She stepped gracefully up the stairs and sitting in the wooden stool, placed the old frayed hat atop her small head. The hat flopped over her blue-green eyes.

"_Ah, hello, I knew I would be getting you soon. It felt like just yesterday I was sorting your parents…" _The sorting hat was whispering thoughts into her head. Her eyes widened.

_What? This thing can speak to me? _She thought, but the Sorting Hat interrupted her thoughts.

"_Of course I can. So, you enjoy asking questions? I can tell you are very much based on fact and not belief. You would suit Ravenclaw well. However, I can sense a great want to prove yourself, a want for power! The traits of a true Slytherin." _Caitlyn gasped. She would never be a Slytherin! Those evil Slytherins…she had heard many stories from her parent's times at school, and the Slytherins did not sound too pleasant. "_No Slytherin? Well I guess that proves you aren't too conceited or anything. You enjoy reading, I see. Well, in that case…" _"RAVENCLAW!" The hat finally shouted, and Caitlyn's shoulders fell with relief. She picked up the hat gently, and handing it back to Professor McGonagall, walked to the Ravenclaw table, who was cheering fairly loudly. The girls who were sorted before her, Cho Chang and Arietta Hartland, waved her over to sit next to them. She sat down, not aware that this would be the beginning of a very long and confusing school life.

***Back to the present***

"CAITLYN!" Catherin shouted. She was waving her hand in front of Caitlyn's face. Caitlyn was giving Catherin a glassy stare, her mouth hanging slightly open. Catherin pulled her knees up to her chest, wrapping her thin arms around her legs and rocking back and forth. "Father, she's doing it again!" She whined. Their father whipped out a wand, and pointing it at Caitlyn, muttered, "_Stupify_," The slight stunning spell hit Caitlyn, and she jumped out of her trance.

"What was that?!" Catherin muttered quite firmly.

"What was what?" Caitlyn said, her voice sounding a bit off-in-the-distance-like.

"You were doing it again, you know, staring off into space and not talking?" Catherin whispered. Caitlyn's face went hot, and she instantly crossed her arms.

"I was thinking," She said. But quite soon after they noticed their parents whispering to each other in the far corner of the house. They exchanged looks, nodded, and Caitlyn spoke first. "Mum, Father, is there something-"

"You'd like to talk to us about?" Catherin finished for her. Instead of giving them pained looks like they expected to get, Mr. and Mrs. Lumbach instead smiled at them. They stepped in front of the girls, standing straight, and Mrs. Lumbach took a deep breath.

"Girls…I have to tell you something." Caitlyn and Catherin looked at each other, smiling wide.

"Your mother…" Mr. Lumbach started.

"I am pregnant." Mrs. Lumbach stated proudly. Catherin's mouth was gaping open, and both twins jumped up off the couch and skipped around their parents, singing, "_We're going to have a younger sibling! We're going to have a younger sibling! We're going to have a younger sibling!" _

"Well, they seem to be taking the news quite good," Mr. Lumbach said, bewildered.

"Indeed!" Mrs. Lumbach said cheerfully.

"_We're going to have a younger sibling! We're going to have a younger sibling! We're going to have a younger sibling!"_

Mrs. Lumbach proceeded to the kitchen, where she was making a fairly large pot of warm chicken soup for dinner. Mr. Lumbach kissed his wife on the cheek pleasantly, smelling the aroma of the saltiness yet sweetness of the soup, wafting it to his nose.

"Dinner smells lovely, darling," He said softly, whispering into her ear. Mrs. Lumbach giggled like a giddy school girl.

"Why thank you, my love." She said, stirring the soup leisurely.

"_We're going to have a younger sibling! We're going to have a younger sibling! We're going to have a younger sibling!" _Now the twins were holding hands, skipping around in circles. Caitlyn skipped over to her parents, waving her arms in an octopus manner and dancing around them like an Indian dancer. Mrs. Lumbach was laughing.

"Now, now, girls, I know you are excited, but you need to quiet down. There are other people in the neighborhood, you know," She said. The girls immediately were hushed, but instead ran to their room where they jumped on their beds. Caitlyn rolled her pajama drawer open and pulled out a black nightgown, edged with blue seams and detail work (her House colors). She threw off her clothes and slipped the gown over her head, also tugging her blue boot-style slippers on. Catherin did the same, only her dress was yellow with black detail work (_her_ House colors) and the slippers were a dark black. They walked quite happily into the dining room, where two bowls of steaming soup were waiting for them at the table.

After eating, the girls went to their rooms, but they stayed up until 2:45 talking. Catherin was the first to fall into the deep slumber, and when Caitlyn couldn't hear her sister talking back to her, she too closed her eyes and fell asleep immediately.


	10. Chapter 10

"Bloody hell…" Gaia murmured, her eyes scanning over the parchment for the third time. Catherin had sent her a very enthusiastic letter, stating that her mother was pregnant. How incredibly unexpected… It had always been just the Lumbach twins; nobody ever would have dreamed of their family expanding. Gaia knew her own mother would NEVER have another baby: she was too busy and, in Gaia's opinion, too old. Not to mention she'd need to be in a relationship to have a new child…

Falling back onto her mushy bed draped in a lavender comforter, Gaia distractedly unhooked Glace's cage and allowed the ferret to hop over to her. Once the weasel situated itself on her master's stomach, Gaia gingerly ran her fingers through the snowy fur. Always, the image of the Lumbach family was Mrs. Lumbach, Mr. Lumbach, Catherin, and Caitlyn. Thinking perhaps harder than necessary, Gaia tried to add a baby into the picture. Could she do it? No. Instead, however, her mind took control of itself and imagined the anonymous Lumbach baby in its first year at Hogwarts. Catherin and Caitlyn would be in their 20s by then… They'd probably have kids of their own. Gaia couldn't help but scrunch up her face in disgust and slight jealousy as she pictured the father of Catherin's child as Satoshi.

Wiping her mind free of those thoughts, Gaia reflected back on her own family. She had an older brother- his name was Jonathan. Being 18, he'd just enrolled in an American muggle college. The Robertson siblings weren't remarkably close, but they did love each other greatly and shared a fantastic bond. As a result, it filled Gaia with remorse when she never received 1 letter from her brother. _He's probably busy, or just too far away, _she reasoned with herself. She knew this could very well be the case, yet she had trouble believing herself.

Sighing, Gaia sat up with one hand on Glace and reread the letter once more. She'd been so absorbed in the fact that there would be another Lumbach sibling in the world that she had barely noticed Catherin's request to go bowling with her. Smiling slightly, she remembered the last time she'd gone bowling. It had been before- her smile slipped off her face. She sluggishly stood up, slid Glace back into her cage, and trotted off to the kitchen to find her mother.

As expected, Mrs. Robertson was washing dishes Muggle-style at the sink, singing quite loudly above the rushing water. "Mum?" Gaia called. Her mom glanced over her shoulder, halting her singing midsentence, turned off the water, and wiped her hands on a towel.

"Yes, Gaia?"

"Catherin sent me a letter… Get this: her mum is pregnant," Gaia indicated. Mrs. Robertson choked on air.

"Is she now? Blimey, I would've been positive Dianne was done having children… Well, I'll just have to call her up and give her my congratulations- or condolences, whichever."

Gaia laughed. "She can probably handle it. She's still young, unlike YOU. Oldie." She stuck out her tongue at her words. Mrs. Robertson placed her hands on her hips, glaring yet also grinning.

"Watch yourself. I may be an oldie, but I'm still a goodie."

"Keep telling yourself that. By the way, Catherin also said she wanted to make plans to go bowling."

Mrs. Robertson turned back to the sink, picking up a dirty bowl. "Bowling, huh? Wow, we haven't done that in forever." She lowered her voice. "In fact, the last time we went, your father and I-"

"Were still together. I know," Gaia interrupted, her voice losing every last ounce of cheeriness. "So can I go?"

"I don't see why not. I'll get more details when I call her mum."

Gaia nodded half-heartedly. "Alright, thanks…" With that, she dashed out of the room, throwing her bottom onto the patched, multicolored loveseat in their small living room. She clicked on the television, but wasn't paying attention to it. She was thinking about that last time they'd gone bowling…

It was in summertime, when Gaia was 10- with her birthday being in late May, she wouldn't be attending Hogwarts until after the following summer. It was a family trip, plus 15 year old Jonathan brought along his girlfriend, Allison. The 5 of them shared a lane, Jonathan and Mr. Robertson dominating. In the end, Mr. Robertson knocked down the most amount of pins, while last place went to Gaia. This upset her, of course, because even though she WAS having a great time watching the others fail, it made her extremely self conscience to be doing even worse than them. Still, her family members all either patted her shoulder or ruffled her hair; Allison gave her a high-five and Jonathan actually offered to buy her some juice.

In the end, they all went out for pizza and were greatly entertained by the Robertson siblings for the rest of the night. It had been the first perfect day in a long, long time…. And possibly the last.

Gaia wasn't at all surprised when she received a letter informing her of her parents' divorce during her first week at Hogwarts. Honestly, she'd been expecting her parents to split up since she was 5. The only time they kissed or snuggled was to make the kids go "EW!" and even though they said "I love you" to each other every day, they never seemed to mean it. It was like a routine thing, something they knew they had to do even if they didn't particularly want to: like letting your dog outside to do its business at 5 in the morning.

One day, after one of her parents' countless fights, Gaia had asked her mom why she'd married her Muggle father.

"Oh, sweetie… Remember this: The best advice I can ever give you is to never do as I do. That being said, I married him because I thought he had money…."

Those words haunted Gaia forever. With the shouting, pointless fighting, sleeping in separate beds, and lack of affection, Gaia was actually _hoping _her parents would end their jaded marriage. It would make everything so much easier and happier… For the most part, it did, except that her mother was getting death threats from her ex-husband on a weekly basis. When she learned that these threats had been going on for years before the divorce, Gaia just wanted to cry.

She pulled her feet up onto the couch cushion, hugging her bare shins (she was wearing denim shorts) and propping her chin on her knees. Thinking about her parents being happily together, laughing, grinning, and kissing, was just like thinking about riding a dragon to school. It could never happen… but boy did she wish it could. Growing up with two parents who hated each other, it was difficult for Gaia to believe that love existed out there. The word "love" brought two thoughts to mind: joyful parents, and Satoshi Ueda. Gaia's chest felt tight as these two topics immediately led her to Catherin Lumbach.

It just wasn't fair… Catherin's parents were so happy together that they were having another baby. Rumor had it that Satoshi was crushing on Catherin. She had a healthy relationship with her sister. She was funny and pretty… Gaia felt tears well up in her eyes, and she took in a precarious breath. How could anyone be so utterly jealous of their best friend? Catherin had done absolutely nothing wrong… As she wondered for a false, dreadful moment whether or not she in truth hated Catherin, she allowed her tears to drip down her face.


	11. Chapter 11

"Hey, Fred, Catherin said Satoshi said he is going bowling with Konata, Blaze and Shiro and he invited Jeffrey and Jeffrey told him he needed to bond with Catherin so he invited Catherin to go with him who invited me to go with them who said I could bring you, so, do you want to go bowling with Konata, Shiro, Blaze, Satoshi, Catherin, Jeffrey, and I? You can bring George." Caitlyn said quickly. Fred looked at Caitlyn, who was sitting on her bed, cross legged.

"Uh, come again? What is…bowling?" He said. Caitlyn laughed and kicked her socked feet at him.

"It's a Muggle sport…There are these pins, you see. Ten of them you see, at the end of a long aisle. There is a big ball, uh, I don't know what it's made out of, but it's really heavy. You roll the ball down the aisle in attempt to knock down all ten pins." Caitlyn explained, looking Fred directly in the eyes. Fred slightly cocked his head.

"Where did you hear about that?" He asked suddenly.

"Catherin's in Muggle Studies. She tells me about these kinds of things. So, you wanna go?"

"Sounds fun. Sure. When are we going?" Caitlyn glanced at the wall clock that ticked away the hours.

"In about thirty minutes. The bowling alley isn't too far away, but we'll have to leave in about fifteen minutes." She claimed. Fred got up off of the desk chair he was sitting in and sat on the edge of Caitlyn's bed. Caitlyn slowly picked up one of her pillows and smacked Fred on top of the head with it. Fred sat there for a moment, but began to laugh slightly. He soon picked up a pillow as well and hit Caitlyn in the back. She fell off the bed, but in the process of doing so managed to pull Fred down onto the ground with her. The carpeted floor gave them a soft fall, but they heard a slight stirring downstairs and Caitlyn squealed. The door creaked open slowly. The couple poked their heads slightly over the edge of the bed to see Catherin standing in the doorway.

"What are you two doing in here…?" She said softly.

"Nothing," They both said in unison. Catherin shook her head.

"Right…C'mon, we should get going to the bowling alley." Catherin slowly said as the two got up off of the floor.

"Hey, is there any way I can talk to George so I can invite him?" Fred asked. Catherin's eyes lit up and she clasped her hands together.

"Ooh, have you ever heard of a telephone? Surely you have one in your house! Doesn't your father work at the Ministry with Muggle artifacts?" She said excitedly. Fred nodded.

"I-I do believe I remember Father telling us something about a fellytone." Caitlyn glanced at Catherin, whose face had gone pale.

"Telephone. Not…fellytone." Catherin said softly. She walked to her side desk and picked up the telephone on it. She glanced at Fred. "What is the house number? Do you remember?" Fred smiled.

"Yes! The number is 826-264-2093!" Caitlyn stared at Fred.

"You know this…how?" Fred shrugged as Catherin entered the number into the phone. She sat there for a moment, but she smiled.

"Ah, yes, is this the Weasley household? Yes, I would like to speak to George. Thank you." There was a short silence. "Hullo, George! This is Catherin. I was wondering if you'd like to come bowling with us. Yes…can you use the Floo Network to my house? Of course! Bye!" Catherin hung up. "C'mon!" Catherin sped out of the bedroom and down the stairs. Caitlyn and Fred exchanged glances, but walked out of the room nonchalantly. The Lumbach's parents weren't home at the moment, so they weren't in their usually places; Mrs. Lumbach in the kitchen and Mr. Lumbach lounging on the couch. Instead, Catherin was pacing the floor by the fireplace, waiting anxiously for George to appear.

No sooner than later, a green puff of smoke appeared and the fifteen year old redhead stepped out of the fireplace quite happily. "We're going bowling! Whatever the bloody hell that is!" He exclaimed first thing. "As long as it isn't in Knockturn Alley-"

"Mum'll have a fit when she finds out we've-" Fred interrupted.

"It's a Muggle sport…" Caitlyn pointed out mid-sentence.

"Taken," Catherin walked out the front door impatiently and tapped her foot.

"Well?" She said, agitated. The other three that were in the house ran out the door as well (Caitlyn had grabbed Catherin and her own handbags off the table before exiting) laughing happily. "We are going to walk since none of us can drive and there isn't Wizarding transportation available that we can take to arrive there." They all nodded.

"How weirded out do you think all the Muggles would be when they see TWO pairs of twins walking down the street?" Fred stated. His brother smirked.

"Or when they see a bunch of random kids at a bowling alley…with their boyfriend or girlfriend just snog-" George started, but Catherin covered her ears and shook her head violently back and forth.

"NOOOOOOOO, NONE OF THAT." She squealed. Naturally, her twin and the other twins were laughing their heads off. "Blimey, I think I'm actually witnessing someone really die of laughter," she muttered.

When they reached the bowling alley, everyone was standing at the doors waiting for them. Shiro, standing next to Konata, both looking a bit annoyed. Satoshi, eyeing Catherin carefully. Blaze, standing on Konata's other side, smiling slightly. Jeffrey, watching Satoshi with a confused look on his face.

Catherin pranced up to Satoshi and placed her arm around his shoulder, propping her chin on his shoulder. "Hullo, Sato, darling." She said, batting her eyes flirtatiously. Caitlyn gasped dramatically, in acted shock.

"CATHERIN, are you flirting with Satoshi Ueda?" She said, glancing at Fred, who in turn was laughing.

"Who wouldn't be?" Satoshi claimed quite happily, enjoying the attention. Caitlyn crossed her arms, pursing her lips.

"You certainly know I won't be. I'll be over here,"-She stepped in place beside Fred- "and in case anyone wonders NO, we were not snogging," She pulled Fred by the wrist into the bowling alley, followed by Catherin shrugging while George, Jeffrey, and Satoshi all burst out in loud laughter. Catherin pushed the door open and slowly trotted in, peering around the large Muggle bowling alley. She let her jaw fall slack; she remembered it being...less colorful.

"Blimey, did they paint the place?" She said, gazing up at the Japanese boy beside her. He raised his shoulders and let them fall again. "Probably," He responded softly. There was a faint tint of pink on his cheeks. Catherin whipped her head around; her sister was whispering her name. She glanced at Caitlyn, who was hanging onto Fred's arm, and Caitlyn winked. She whispered something into Fred's ear, and his mouth fell open, looking back and forth from Catherin and Satoshi. He closed his eyes melodramatically and smiled, nodding. Catherin laughed nervously, walking over the front desk. Caitlyn rushed over, giggling.

"Two size seven and halves, please!" Caitlyn said, holding up two fingers. The bowling clerk nodded, ducking his head underneath the counter, and emerging with two pairs of red and blue bowling shoes. When everyone had gotten their own shoes and pulled them onto their feet, they all walked to the far right end of the alley. Caitlyn ran to the controller's seat and slid in. "I'M CONTROLLING IT!" She exclaimed happily. She pressed each button one by one (very slowly at that), making sound effects each time she pressed one ("Boop, beep, BUTTONS, beep, blup, blep"). After what seemed like forever, the names were all lined up. Satoshi and Catherin were playing a double team against Fred and Caitlyn as a double team, George and Jeffrey as a double team, and Shiro, Konata, and Blaze on the next row all playing against each other. When Catherin questioned her theories, Caitlyn just shrugged and said, "They didn't want ANY of us to come; let them play by themselves." Catherin just went along with it.

After everyone had gotten their bowling balls (and explained to Fred, George, and Jeffrey how bowling works) Fred aligned himself at the front of the aisle. He raised the bowling ball, swung his hand back, and hit the pins...every single one of them falling over. Caitlyn's mouth gaped open. "WHAT? It's your first time playing...AND YOU GOT A BLOODY STRIKE?" She shouted. Fred was grinning.

"Is that a good thing?" He asked, a hint of sarcasm ringing in his voice. Caitlyn nodded quickly.

"Course it is! I think!" She looked at her sister for approval, who nodded. Satoshi was up next. He slid out of his chair, picked up the bowling ball and inserted his fingers into the three holes (with some help from Catherin; he had no idea what fingers went in which holes), and rolled the ball down the aisle. It rolled, the red blur going down the wooden floor...and it fell into the gutter.

"What? You-(he called the ball something that made Catherin go, "SATOSHI!")-, I should've gotten that!" Catherin swallowed, and looking at her sister, nodded her head towards the bathroom. Caitlyn's eyes flashed with anxiety, though when she looked at her twin the expression in them softened. She slowly got up from the chair, shoving Fred into it as he looked at the control panel with awe. Caitlyn led Catherin into the bathroom, and when they got in there, she whipped around to face her twin.

"What's up, Catherin?" Catherin closed her blue eyes, turned to face her reflection in the mirror, and opened them again. She didn't dare look at Caitlyn.

"I-I think I'm in love with Sato-" She stopped midsentence to clear her throat, "With Satoshi." Caitlyn blinked, confused.

"Catherin, this may come as a shock, but I know this fact already." Catherin shook her head grimly and licked her lips.

"N-no...I'm really...in love with him. It's not just a crush. I have much more feeling for him." Caitlyn looked down at her feet, then hopped up on the counter to sit on it. She swung her legs.

"Are you sure you aren't just dreaming?" She whispered. Catherin shook her head violently, gripping the sink.

"Sometimes-sometimes I feel like I could murder myself when he gets near another girl. I get so jealous. And it won't stop."

"Murder is a strong word."

"BUT IT'S TRUE." She pulled her wand out of her boot and pointed the tip to her forehead. "I should just kill myself now, get it over with..." Caitlyn snatched the wand away from her.

"Oh no you won't, you are my sister and I will not allow you to do that." Catherin looked at Caitlyn, pain clearly etched into her normally brilliant eyes.

"Why not? You kill me, then. Do it."

"NO!" The door to the bowling alley opened up and Konata peeked her head in.

"Um, it's your turn, Caitlyn..." She muttered. Caitlyn nodded, getting down from the counter. She tugged on the sleeve of Catherin's yellow t-shirt, symbolizing her to come with her. Catherin, pushing back a strand of her blonde hair, pushed herself through the door first, trudging her feet. "Blimey, what did you say?" Caitlyn shook her head.

"Nothing. Just that I wouldn't kill her." Konata's small eyes widened, and she walked over to join her friends in the next lane over.

Catherin had sunk into a chair beside Satoshi, taking tiny glances at him every once in a while. Little did she notice he was doing the same thing. When Catherin looked at Caitlyn, she realized that fiery competitiveness had returned to her eyes. Caitlyn had rolled up the sleeves to her dark blue sweatshirt and pulled her shoulder-length hair into a high ponytail. She lined herself up with the pins, and glaring at them over the bowling ball, she threw the ball. The dark navy ball rolled, but unfortunately it swerved around the front pin and only hit pins 1, 3, 5, 6, 8, and 10. The others were left standing. "AH HA HA HA! Fail!" Fred shouted. A few people from close by lanes gave him looks of disgust, but he ignored them. Caitlyn placed her hands on her hips.

"I'll have you know that I still have one more turn." She said, raising her eyebrows. Fred got up from his seat, crossing his arms, and stepped up to Caitlyn. He looked down at her, and they were so close they were almost touching.

"I don't care," He said softly, kissing her. This action got more nasty looks, but some people around them gushed at the sight. One older man muttered, "Ah, young love." Caitlyn pulled away from Fred when the ball came rolling into the ball retrieval area and grabbed the bowling ball. She tossed the ball, and naturally, she got a spare. She punched at the air.

"YES! Yes, yes, yes, yes, YES!" She said, grabbing Satoshi's hands and dancing around in circles. Catherin looked at Caitlyn quizzically. "He was the closest person," Caitlyn said innocently. Satoshi went along with it, shrugging, but smiling all the same. Fred's face contorted into something of a mixture of pride and extreme competitiveness.

Naturally, the game went by quicker than they seemed to want it to be. As Fred, George, and Caitlyn were giving the man at the front desk the shoes back, they shook his hand gratefully but jokingly.

"Pleasure meeting you, sir." Caitlyn said, smiling wide. Fred closed his eyes and bowed deeply, taking Caitlyn by the arm and leading her out of the bowling alley. George had actually hopped over the desk and hugged the man, then ran out after his brother. Satoshi kissed all the girls that he passed as long as they were young on the cheek (Catherin's face had gotten VERY red when he kissed her), thanking them for the cookies. None of it made any sense, but the Weasley twins, Caitlyn, and Satoshi seemed to be getting a kick out of it. Catherin threw her hands up in exasperation.

"What are you doing?" She squealed. They all shook their heads.

"I have no idea," George said.

"But it's hilarious!" Caitlyn added. They all nodded in agreement. Satoshi walked over to Catherin, picking up a strand of her hair as he walked around her in circles.

"Catherin, sweetheart, you need to get a life if you don't think that's funny," He whispered, but loudly enough so everyone could hear. Catherin, of course, nearly died at the fact that Satoshi had called her sweetheart.

"Oh! I just realized something!" She said. Everyone gazed curiously at her. "Gaia never made it here!" Satoshi's face had gone extremely pale for some reason. Caitlyn seemed to be the only one who noticed, for she pulled him away to talk to him privately. She placed her hands on her hips casually and looked around.

"Why did you look like you wanted to be sick when Catherin mentioned Gaia?"

Satoshi's normal, cheerful expression turned dark.

"I don't want to see her at all," He said. Caitlyn's mouth hung slightly open. "I dumped her for a reason. She was not anywhere near my type. She didn't get me at all like-" He stopped mid-sentence, as if daring himself to say the next line, "Like Catherin does." Caitlyn gazed up at Satoshi, whose blue eyes were staring right into her own. He was breathing hard, but calmly.

"L-like Catherin? Satoshi, do you like Catherin?" Caitlyn whispered. Satoshi swallowed.

"Maybe a little, I don't know. But she's…she is different from other girls. She isn't always hanging on my arm like most girls do." He admitted softly. Caitlyn grinned. Satoshi's eyes darted around. "You won't tell anyone, will you?" He said.

"Of course not," Caitlyn muttered, placing her hand on his shoulder. "I won't tell a soul."


	12. Chapter 12

Gaia sat upside-down on the couch, the ankles of her bare feet propped against the top of the couch's back with her hair dangling down to touch the floor. She fanned herself lazily, sweating despite the fact that she was wearing only short-shorts and a sports bra. A heat wave had swept across her area, bringing high temperatures so intense it wiped out most of the power. There was still enough to power a fan, but that did not make the room nearly as cool as it needed to be.

"Hey, I've got a plan. You know that lake by Grandmum's house? I have passes that last all year, we could go swimming there," Mrs. Robertson suggested, tying her dirty blonde hair into a messy bun. Gaia fell onto the floor, scrambling to her feet despite the abrupt pain in her head.

"Then what the bloody heck are we doing here! Let's get going!" she exclaimed. Her mother chuckled slightly.

"Thank you for not cussing, but get some patience. You need to find a bathing suit- do you even still have one that fits?- and perhaps you could invite some friends to come? Catherin and Caitlyn, maybe?"

For a moment, Gaia pondered about the last suggestion. There were many things most people liked to do with friends that she preferred to do alone… But once she thought about it, she would not want to go to the lake alone. What fun was swimming by yourself? So, she dashed into the kitchen as quickly as she could in the heat, yanked the phone off its receiver, and dialed the number of the Lumbach residence.

"I'LL GET IT!" Catherin shouted as the _ring _chimed throughout their home, despite the fact that nobody else in the house looked eager at all to answer it. She tripped on her way to the kitchen, though she still managed to knock down the phone. "'Ello?" she rang, even though the phone was merely laying at her side. Soon, though, she propped herself up and took the phone in her hand.

"Hey, Cath, it's Gaia. I'm going swimming today at the lake, I was wondering- well, my _mum _was wondering really, she suggested it- if you and Caitlyn would like to come along?"

Catherin's already ecstatic face lit up. "Swimming! Sounds brilliant!" She covered the receiver with her hand and shouted, "CAITLYN! WANNA GO SWIMMING WITH GAIA?"

"SURE, THAT SOUNDS BRILLIANT!" Caitlyn called back.

With a short laugh, Catherin brought the phone back up to her ear. "Alright! What time?"

"As soon as you're ready," Gaia responded, a smile creeping onto her face.

"Your dad and I will Apparate you there, sweetie," Mrs. Lumbach told Catherin, entering the room with her hand on her still relatively flat stomach.

"Perfect! Did you hear that, Gaia?"

"Yeah, I did. See you, then?"

Catherin nodded enthusiastically. "Uh huh! See you!" The moment she hung up the phone, she ran herself into the hall, taking the stairs two at a time. Rolling her eyes yet grinning, Caitlyn uncrossed her legs, got to her feet, and strode after her sister casually.

Once in her shared bedroom, Catherin kneeled hastily in front of her dresser, ripped the bottom drawer open, and buried her hands inside. She examined each article of clothing for about 5 seconds before carelessly flinging it back over her shoulder. Finally, her hands stopped flying when she grasped the top half of a two-piece bathing suit. "Perfect," she breathed with sparkling eyes.

"You're going to wear _that _in public? Honestly. You might as well go naked," commented Caitlyn, who was leaning against the doorway with crossed arms, her eyes sweeping disapprovingly across the mess her twin had made so suddenly. Catherin stuck out her tongue: she was perfectly fine with her white bikini covered in golden diamond patterns. The top was strapless, while the bottoms had two gold-yellow ties dangling off the sides, only there for decoration.

Caitlyn spent much less time at her dresser. She knew exactly what she'd select: a V-neck tankini with red and blue horizontal stripes crossing it, as well as solid blue swim shorts with white on the seam. She retrieved a beach bag off of the top shelf of their closet, prefilled with pairs of towels, flip-flops, sunglasses, and sun tan lotion.

"Ready to go, sister dear?" she questioned in a sing-song voice. Catherin nodded, slamming her messily packed dresser drawer shut. She got to her feet, bolting to her twin's side in an instant.

"Let's go!" She lowered her voice. "And let's not let Daddy find out what suit I'm wearing, alright?"

"Oh, my lips are sealed," Caitlyn assured her with a laugh and a wink.

When the four of them arrived at the lake, they found it was neither too crowded nor too deserted. The girls changed into their bathing suits in the restroom while Mrs. Robertson found a spot to set up their towels. Gaia's jaw dropped once Catherin danced out of her stall wearing that bikini of hers- Gaia herself wore a simple black one piece with purple outlining. Even though a majority of the people at the lake were elderly ("It's right near a retirement home," Gaia had said when Catherin asked why this was), there was a good number of younger people there, many of which were teenage boys. They openly checked out the three blonde witches, and their responses were as follows: Caitlyn either rolled her eyes or glared at them, Gaia acted as if they weren't there, and Catherin just gave them half smiles.

"Catherin dear, WHAT are you wearing?" asked Mrs. Robertson as the girls made it over to her. "It's cute, don't get me wrong, but if I caught Gaia in something like that I'd skin her alive."

Catherin giggled, squirting sunscreen onto her arm. "I dunno, it's my favorite swimsuit." She let out a sigh containing a combination of dreaminess and longing. "I just wish that instead of these pervy blokes," she motioned at nearby boys, "it was Satoshi here seeing me in it." Gaia flinched at these words as if her friend had just cursed rather strongly. The action went unnoticed, though…. By Catherin at least.

After covering themselves in the white lotion, the trio raced out to the water. Caitlyn made it there first, and in her haste Gaia ended up tripping in the shallows. All three girls laughed as she stood up, her hands and knees covered in wet sand. They splashed out deeper until the water reached their chests. Then, they spread out into a triangle formation and tossed around a miniature football Gaia had brought along.

"Come on, you so could have got that!" groaned Gaia as Catherin sent the ball whizzing past Caitlyn's head. Caitlyn didn't seem to notice the shout or the ball, though: her gaze fixed on some spot in the distance, beyond the rope marking off where people were forbidden from swimming past. A strange sort of terror was blazing in her widened eyes, and she stumbled gradually backwards. Catherin and Gaia gasped as she disappeared under the water, resurfacing a mere second later. Precariously, she raised her hand up and pointed off into the distance. "Sh…shark…" she whispered.

"What was that?" Catherin questioned, swimming over to her twin with Gaia close behind her.

"SHARK! EVERYONE LOOK OUT, THERE'S A SHARK IN THE WATER!" Caitlyn shouted at the top of her voice. Some people turned their gazes to the lifeguard, a few people actually screamed and ran to the shore, while most people stared at the blonde like she was mental. A few seconds passed, and she started cracking up. "Blimey, you should've seen your FACES! Sharks don't even live in lakes… And did you see that some people actually fell for it?" she laughed, gripping her side with one hand while the back of the other was pressed against her forehead.

"Your boyfriend is a _terrible _influence," Gaia commented, a grin slowly seeping onto her face.

Caitlyn reduced her mirth to giggles. She opened her mouth to say, "Catherin should really act more mischievous, since she wants _Satoshi_ so badly," but a voice in her head insisted that that would be one of the worst things she could do. So instead, she simply said, "Yes, well…"

With the ball long gone, the girls settled for racing each other across the lake. Caitlyn won three out of six times; Catherin won twice and Gaia won once. After just splashing each other and swimming around like little kids, the girls headed back to shore. Wrapping themselves up in their towels, they retrieved some money out of their bags and went off to buy some ice cream. They talked about stupid, pointless things such as what would happen if someone divided by 0, all the way there. Gaia purchased a strawberry ice cream cone drowned in rainbow sprinkles while the twins bought vanilla- Caitlyn's with cinnamon on top and caramel swirl in it, Catherin's the other way around. Caitlyn licked hers neatly; however, Gaia's kept melting all over the place and Catherin probably got more on her face and hands than in her mouth.

The three companions joked around, ran up and down the beach, and spoke nonsense until Mrs. Robertson declared it was time to go. As the girls laughed loudly, stepping in sync with their arms around each other, they had absolutely no idea of the tragedy befalling the Ueda family as they walked.


	13. Chapter 13

The door flung open while Caitlyn was doing her Herbology essay, Catherin's blue eyes flooding with tears. Caitlyn looked up in alarm, shocked at her sister's wailing. "Catherin, what the heck?" Catherin sat down on the end of her bed, clutching a scroll of parchment in her hand.

"S-Sato's parents…t-they…the twins and the middle daughter…" Catherin sobbed, shaking her head.

"C'mon, Kit-Kat, what's wrong?" Caitlyn slowly stood up, treading over to Catherin. She sat down next to her, putting her arm around her shoulder. Catherin shoved the parchment in Caitlyn's open hand, and Caitlyn unrolled it.

_Dear Catherin,_

_It is so hard to say this, but my parents, Sakito, Satoko, and Sana have all been killed. I can't write anymore, so if you don't mind we should talk about this face-to-face. I'd prefer that._

_Satoshi_

Caitlyn stared at the letter in disbelief. "Catherin," she said slowly, "are you sure this isn't just one of his jokes?" Catherin gave a menacing glare.

"CAITLYN! He isn't that cruel, like _some people _I could name_,_ and this should be taken seriously!" Tears were still streaming down Catherin's face. "I-I'm going to go invite him over," She said, jumping to her feet and shuffling out of the room. Caitlyn stared at her black Nikes. Could this really be true?

When Caitlyn ventured into the living area, her worst fears were confirmed. Satoshi Ueda had made himself comfortable on the brown leather couch, his head in his hands. His shoulders were shaking, symbolizing that he was crying. How strange it had been to see such a marvelous boy who never showed his emotions break down in her very house. Catherin as well was on the couch, her head leaning on Satoshi's shoulder.

"Shh, Sato," She was saying, "It's quite alright." Satoshi looked down at her. His eyes were puffy and red, his cheeks stained with tear trails.

"No it is not! I'm a BLOODY ORPHAN. MY LIFE IS GOING TO BE TURNED INTO ONE OF THOSE CHICK FLICKS. AND UNLESS I'M THE HOT LOVE INTEREST, I DO NOT WANT TO HAVE MY OWN CHICK FLICK!" Satoshi was speaking nearly ninety miles an hour. Catherin flung her arms around Satoshi's neck, burying her face in the space between his neck and his shoulder.

"If you're going to be in a chick flick, can I be the girl the hot love interest falls in love with?" Catherin sobbed. Satoshi laughed faintly and smiled.

"Sure," He said, wiping Catherin's tears off her cheek, "Of course," Caitlyn grinned.

"One condition; I get to be the annoying sister who is such a supporter of the couple they end up killing her in the end because she is so annoying." She said. Catherin gave her sister a funny look, but eventually nodded slowly. She curled her legs underneath her and cuddled up against Satoshi. Caitlyn stood in front of them awkwardly as Satoshi hugged Catherin close to him, whispering nothingness into her ear. Caitlyn swallowed. "I'm, uh, going to the kitchen…to get us…some drinks…yeah, some drinks…" She said, slowly backing out of the living room. She could already feel her eyes watering, and she didn't feel the need for Satoshi and Catherin to see her break down into fits of crying. She slumped down to the floor, hugging her knees.

"I feel so useless," She muttered to herself, silently crying on the kitchen floor. She shuffled to her feet, opening the refrigerator and pulling out a bottle of Muggle soda. She popped the lid off of the glass bottle, but didn't drink any of the dark fizzy drink. She instead placed it on the mahogany table. Caitlyn very slowly walked out of the kitchen, walking in on a somewhat disturbing scene. Catherin was on the couch, her head on Satoshi's chest. Both of their eyes were closed.

Catherin Lumbach was sleeping on Satoshi Ueda.

Caitlyn's heart jumped. What? What was happening? They were only fourteen…well; Satoshi was fifteen, but still! Caitlyn cleared her throat, walking over to the two. She cocked her head slightly, brushing a strand of Satoshi's dark brown hair out of his face. She jerked her hand back when Satoshi moved his head slightly, moving his lips in a silent whisper. He spoke a little more loudly, but it was nothing more than a murmur.

"Cath…Catherin," He muttered, and Caitlyn's eyes lit up. He was saying her sister's name…in his sleep! How shocking…Caitlyn blinked, slowly backing away. Oh yes, Fred would definitely hear about this. She ran to her room, glancing at Phantom who had hopped on the bed purring so Caitlyn would stroke her, but Caitlyn ignored her and went straight to the desk. She whipped out a quill and a piece of parchment.

_Dear Fred,_

_Satoshi did tell you his grave news, correct? If he didn't I won't tell you. But he came over to our house…and, get this, he and Catherin cried themselves to sleep. At the moment they're both on the couch sleeping on each other…but guess what? Satoshi was muttering Catherin's name in his sleep! HOW SWEET! Write back ASAP._

_Love you and miss you,_

_Your Lovey Dovey Muffin-Face McCutikinz with Sugar On Top (aka Caitlyn)_

Caitlyn attached the letter to Persephone's leg, giving the tawny owl a treat before she flew out the window. This was tragic. Her sister…and one of her friend's brothers…one of her boyfriend's friends, at that…Caitlyn went back into the kitchen and drank the soda she had left on the table. When she peeked in the living room, however, she saw that the two had woken up and were now sitting side by side on the couch staring intently at each other. That's when Caitlyn saw her chance. She burst into the living shrieking, "CATHERIN WAS SLEEPING ON SATOSHI!" The two both looked utterly embarrassed, as their faces were both turning a brilliant shade of red.

"W-what?" Catherin whispered softly. Satoshi looked down at the blonde, stroking her face with his fingers.

"I don't mind, you're a pretty girl." He said. He turned to Caitlyn. "What time is it?" Caitlyn looked at the clock on the wall hanging above the fireplace.

"Almost seven p.m." Satoshi immediately stood up.

"I was supposed to be back by six! Ah, I told Sakura and Shiro I would…" He kissed Catherin on the cheek and hugged Caitlyn, swiftly rushing out the door. Catherin still sat on the couch, staring after him.

"I slept on him…he didn't mind it…and he kissed my cheek," Catherin was muttering. Caitlyn sat next to her, placing her hand on her twin's shoulder.

"You'll also never believe this, but he was saying your name in his sleep." She said, nodding very leisurely. Catherin never did believe it, but she still thought that deep down he must've been feeling something about her. She trudged into the bedroom, going to write a letter to Gaia.

Caitlyn stared at the fireplace, her expression blank and her teal eyes glassy.


	14. Chapter 14

As Gaia entered the Great Hall, she felt as if she and her friends were indifferent from every other student. They were all smiling; laughing; chatting animatedly; ecstatic that they'd reached the beginning of yet another year at Hogwarts. Meanwhile, Gaia and company were silent; moping; giving off an aura of depression. It was like everyone else was moving in a speedy blur, while they progressed in slow motion.

The train ride had been surprisingly uneventful. Satoshi had not sat with his normal group; his friends figured he had chosen to sit with his siblings. However, they were only partially right, for Shiro was seated with Draco Malfoy. The only noteworthy thing that had occurred was that Caitlyn got so bored that she actually fell asleep on Fred's shoulder.

"No wonder she got all psyched that Satoshi and I fell asleep on each other- oh quit smirking Gaia, you know it wasn't like _that_- this is bloody adorable!" Catherin squealed in a voice much higher than her usual one. Gaia waggled her finger at her friend, her smirk only deepening.

"You think it's cute now, but when they go to the _next level _and there's a little Fred-Caitlyn running around, you won't." Catherin blushed as if she and Satoshi were the subject of discussion as opposed to Caitlyn and Fred. For a brief moment, Fred looked offended, but the expression quickly vanished. He cocked his head slightly to one side, faintly drumming his fingers on his slumbering girlfriend's arm.

"You know… That would be pretty bloody adorable." Catherin's jaw dropped, while Gaia looked downright amused. "Now I can't help but wonder if they'd be cuter with my eyes and her hair, or her eyes and my hair…"

Trying very hard to hold back laughter, Gaia responded, "Oh, the second combination for sure. And your freckles, that would just be the icing on the cake!"

But that had been the only highlight of the morning. Gaia slipped her hand into the pocket of her robes, wrapping her fingers around the piece of parchment on which the letter she'd received a few nights ago was written. She recalled that it had been difficult to read, since the ink was smudged with what she knew could only be tears. Despite its illegibility, Gaia had eventually deciphered what it said:

Dear Gaia,

I'll start off by apologizing if you can't read this- I'm crying pretty bad right now. I'm not sure if they're tears of sadness or joy, though: you see, I've got terrible news and absolutely wonderful news. So, Satoshi came to my house today, for the most heart-wrenching reason ever: he's an orphan now, and his only living siblings are Sakura and Shiro. I can't even begin to imagine how agonizing it must be for him… There _is _a bright side, though. We ended up falling asleep on each other, and according to Caitlyn, he said my name in his sleep… When we woke up, he called me pretty, and he kissed my cheek before he left! I know you hate to hear about him, but please try to understand that I'm not just a fan girl anymore. My feelings for Satoshi are growing stronger and stronger by the day… I'm sorry if it's bothering you, though. I sort of feel like I'm a bad friend- like I'm stealing him from you…

Well, I'll see you on September first.

Sincerely,

Catherin Lumbach

Gaia sighed inaudibly. After much consideration, she decided not to be mad at Catherin. What wrong was there in falling in love? Besides, it wasn't _her _that had caused Gaia so much emotional pain… Falling for a heartbreaker was her own problem.

She was barely aware that she had taken a seat at the Hufflepuff table- she only realized it when the feast appeared. Everything looked delectable as usual, though Gaia didn't have the appetite to sample any of it. Her eyes drifted around the room, landing on the Gryffindor table. Normally, you could hear the voice of Satoshi Ueda above every single person in the room. At the time, however, he was consuming small forkfuls of steak with a feeble smile on his face. His only involvement in Jeffrey and the Weasley twins' conversation was a nod every now and then with the occasional comment. Even his three friends appeared to be struggling to remain upbeat and animated.

To Satoshi's right was a delicate-looking girl with reddish-brown hair that fell in ringlets down her back. Seeing as she didn't recognize her, Gaia figured she was a first year. Still, there was something vaguely familiar about her… Not caring how rude it was, Gaia stared intently at the girl. Where had she seen her before…? Gaia's blue eyes widened behind her glasses. Something in the girl's face- her nose, or head shape, or lips perhaps- were very similar to Satoshi's. That meant that she must be Sakura!

Although her face was blank, there was a lonely, defeated sort of look in her green eyes. She sat so close to Satoshi that you'd think she feared if she was apart from him, she'd have nothing left. Really, though, that was only to be expected… Since he was the oldest, Satoshi would have to act as a fatherly figure to her. But she still had 6 whole years until she came of age and Satoshi could drop such a significant role…That must be incredibly difficult on both of them. Gaia was used to having just one parent figure, but that was her mother. Being raised by her own brother would be absolutely unimaginable.

Gaia briefly snapped out of her thoughts when she saw Konata Verdent dashing over to sit on the same bench as her, tears streaming down her thin face. She had been running from the direction of the Ravenclaw table, so Gaia glanced over her shoulder to face it. Shiro, who was usually chatting animatedly with Caitlyn, Cho Chang, Luna Lovegood, or one of his roommates, sat at the very edge of the bench away from everyone. He poked uninterestedly at his dinner, looking like he'd turn around and hex anyone who so much as said "hi" to him. Gaia bit her lip, turning slowly away. The Ueda kids must require a ton of strength to make it through their whole ordeal.

"Hey uh… I'm going to turn in for the night," Gaia told Catherin a few minutes later.

"Wha? A'weady? Weh, okay. Ahm gon' come up sun," the twin replied, her mouth stuffed with food. For a moment, Gaia was disgusted, but then she recalled that her friend ate like a pig when she was distressed. Apparently she'd forgotten that the one and onlySatoshi Ueda had called her pretty, let her fall asleep on him, and given her a kiss on the cheek only a few nights ago. That, or the memory of what other news she'd received that same evening overpowered the pleasant memory.

As it turned out, Gaia was not the only one heading up to bed early. She couldn't help but wonder naively if the sadness of those who knew that the Uedas had become orphans was contagious. It was much more logical, she knew, that lots of students probably just had long days.

By the time she had merely made it halfway down the hall, almost everyone was on their way to bed. She flinched slightly, a gasp escaping from her mouth as a sparkling firework whizzed past her head. She glared, whipping her head around to search for its source, though she gave a half grin as she saw Fred and George cracking up silently around a corner. Rolling her eyes good-naturedly, she turned on her heel and continued on her way up to bed. However, she immediately stopped in her tracks once more as her eyes glimpsed the quickly-moving cluster of sparks again. It was shooting directly at a sandy haired Gryffindor boy that was the same exact height as Gaia, innocently on his way to his dorm.

"Hey, WATCH OUT!" Gaia cried, bolting over to him. Widening his blue eyes, the boy ducked just in time. Skidding to a halt, Gaia let out a big sigh, placing one hand over her heart. "Bloody hell, are you alright?"

The boy brought up his hand to grip the back of his hair, showing a toothy smile. "Yeah, I'm fine. I get nearly blown up on a daily basis. Thanks for caring, though." He spoke with an Irish accent: the accent Gaia had always found best-sounding. She chuckled under her breath.

"Don't mention it." She tilted her head slightly. "You know, I don't think we've met…"

"You're quite right. The name's Seamus. Seamus Finnigan."

Yes, he was certainly Irish. "I'm Gaia. Gaia Robertson. It's a pleasure."

"Definitely. I'd love to stay and chat, but I've got to get on up to bed or else I might fall asleep right here and now. I'll see you around… Gaia?"

"Guess so." Too tired to think up a cleverer good-bye, Gaia allowed Seamus to turn, meet up with a black Gryffindor boy, and disappear up the staircase. "Blimey… Who was he?" Gaia whispered, staring at the spot where the Irish boy had stood moments ago.

"Don't you listen? He's Seamus Finnigan," said the voice of Catherin, making Gaia jump- she hadn't acknowledged that her friend was standing so close behind her.

"Well DUH, but I mean… WHO is he?"

Catherin shrugged. "I don't know much about him, except that he's a third year and Harry Potter's roommate," she indicated. Gaia's expression fell.

"Third year? Geh, I just don't go for younger guys…" A small smile crept onto her face. "Though there's one exception: if he's my height or taller…"

For a moment, Catherin stared at her blankly. Then, she suddenly sucked in a gasp. As if her voice box had turned itself off the moment realization dawned on her, she grabbed her spectacled roommate by the wrist and pulled her up the stairs to their dorm. She tossed Gaia onto her bed, throwing herself onto her own. "Hold up, hold up, HOLD UP. Do you think you have a crush on Seamus!"

Gaia blushed, timidly clenching her hands in her lap like a shy little school girl. "I dunno, I've only just met him… But let's just say I think I no longer have a reason to be mad about you loving Satoshi."


	15. Chapter 15

Caitlyn sat on a bench outside by the lake, chatting happily with Fred. Catherin, Gaia, George, and Satoshi sat on the ground in front of them playing a game of Exploding Snap.

"Okay, so I was thinking how _cute _it would be for our children to have red hair, blue eyes, and freckles." Fred was saying. Caitlyn squealed.

"Oh, Fred, that'd be bloody _adorable_." She said. "Oh, but how many kids do we want? I've always wanted a lot…"

"Yes! We can have as many as you want! Keep up the Weasley tradition!"

"Oh my…So six children? Blimey, that'd be a handful. Oh, But I would _love_ to have six children!" Catherin looked up from the game, unfortunately earning her a card to explode on her wrist.

"SIX! Oh goodness, Caitlyn, I wouldn't want _nearly _that many!" She exclaimed while rubbing her wrist. Satoshi also looked up.

"Of course, Catherin. Because you want more than six." He said, smirking. Catherin's hand flew to her mouth, covering a gasp.

"Oooh, Satoshi Vincent Ueda, don't you say that!" She screeched.

"Well, Catherin Serene Lumbach, I can say what I want." Caitlyn and Fred, surprisingly, were ignoring this conversation between the two and still talking about children.

"Fred, darling, we need to decide on genders and names! Oh, so much work!"

"I've always liked the name James. But we can't do that, because Harry's dad was named James. And Ginny is always telling me _her _son's name is going to be James…" Caitlyn gasped.

"Oh, Fred, what about Justin? I love that name so much! Oh, oh, oh, and how about Ryan? Or Matthew? So many names!"

"Caitlyn, sweetheart, you also need to think about girl names! Personally, I like Helena, or perhaps Rachael. Or Lydia! Caitlyn, what do you think?" The couple was so involved in their conversation they didn't realize Harry Potter and Ron Weasley run up to the group and exclaim, "Sirius Black has broken out of Azkaban!" After about five minutes of Harry and Ron telling them about some black dog Harry saw, Caitlyn and Fred finally noticed them.

"Oh, hullo, Harry! Ron! What're you doing here?" Caitlyn said joyfully. Ron rolled his eyes.

"Oh please…" He moaned.

"Sirius Black…he's escaped from Azkaban." Catherin said, her face very pale.

"Satoshi will protect you, Catherin, don't you worry!" George said happily, making kissing noises. For once, both Satoshi and Catherin's face went red. Normally Satoshi would've laughed about this with his friends, but he seemed much more quiet and composed of himself recently. George stopped laughing. It was hard nowadays to keep up with the laughter when Satoshi wasn't joining in. Caitlyn and Fred, however, didn't seem to care as much as the others, for they immediately went back to their conversation about babies. Eventually Caitlyn fished a piece of parchment out of her bag and began making a chart; one side for girl names and one side for boy names.

"I've always loved Hermione's name. But I don't want to make it obvious that I'm naming a _baby_ after her." Caitlyn sighed.

"Why would you want to name a baby after her, anyways?" Ron spoke up.

"Why is it that all of the good names are already taken by people we know?" Fred pondered aloud, ignoring Ron. Ron sighed, dragging Harry away.

"Caitlyn," George said slowly, "you aren't pregnant or anything, are you?" Catherin gasped.

"Oh, George, what a terrible thing to say! She's only fourteen!" Gaia said, shocked.

"Weeeeeeell, knowing them…" Catherin started. But their taunting didn't seem to faze them. They were both laughing too hard to even care. Caitlyn actually fell into Fred's lap she was laughing so hard. She gripped her stomach.

"Imagine it! Me, pregnant! Oh, come on…I'm fourteen! Like I would do such a thing!" She said, laughing.

"Miss Lumbach, the tests have come back." Fred said in a horribly acted deep voice, "You are having triplets." Caitlyn gasped, and using a high pitched and airy southern accent she said,

"Oh, doctah, whatevah shall we do?"

"Will a kiss make it better, miss?"

"I dunno, you tell me." And with that Fred kissed her on the lips. A warm and lengthy kiss. Gaia and Catherin shuddered. They still weren't used to seeing Caitlyn and Fred making out. When she was here, kissing Fred, Caitlyn felt like she was in heaven. Like she was the luckiest girl alive. She knew she had made a good choice in choosing to like Fred Weasley, for they had been together for nearly a whole year and nothing bad had happened to them yet. Most couples in Hogwarts had broken up after a month or so. Take Arietta, for instance; she had dated a boy from Hufflepuff at the end of the year last year and at the beginning of this year he had broken up with her. At the moment, she was dating one of the older Ravenclaws who was in sixth year.

But she had felt something special with Fred. Nearly a year of crushing on someone was unbelievable, but dating them for that long? Surely there was something more than just a crush. But until Fred said those three irreplaceable words, Caitlyn would have to keep the undying flame of love at a spark.

Catherin picked up the paper that Caitlyn had dropped in her fits of laughter. On it, she found written:

Boys Girls

Ryan Caroline

Justin Lucille

Alexander Rachael

Anthony Lydia

Matthew Helena

Walter Annabel

Zeke Kiersten

Austin Elizabeth

Catherin shook her head. Her sister was mental, already deciding on baby names. Caitlyn, when she pulled out from the kiss, she snatched the paper from Catherin's hands.

"That is _ours, _thank you very much." She said, stuffing it back into her bag.

"Caitlyn, _please_ don't tell me that was a list of baby names," Gaia moaned.

"On the contrary, my dear friend, it was." Caitlyn said happily. Gaia squeaked, shaking her head.

"Oh, Caitlyn, Fred, you are years away from having children." Satoshi muttered, shuffling the cards.

"It never hurts to prepare." Caitlyn said, shrugging. "Oh, by the way, did you hear that Sirius Black has escaped from Azkaban?" Satoshi, Catherin, Gaia, and George all groaned.

"Seriously, Caitlyn! It's like you don't even listen!" George said.

"What, you were talking about this?" Fred inquired.

"Yes, but you were too hung up in talking about babies to care," his twin answered.

"Oh, forget you," Fred said, waving a hand at him.

The next morning was quite a commotion. The news about Sirius Black had flooded around the school. The only good thing was the upcoming Hogsmeade trip. Rumor had it that Harry Potter hadn't gotten his permission slip signed, and when he asked Professor McGonagall if she could sign it, she fiercely rejected him. One day when Caitlyn was with the usual group walking out in the courtyard on their way to Hogsmeade, Fred and George excused themselves for a moment before catching Harry in his Invisibility Cloak and taking him back into the school. Caitlyn waited patiently in the cold, rubbing her arms. Despite her jacket, scarf, gloves, and hat, she was still terribly cold. Fred and George came out of the school, and Caitlyn trotted up to Fred curiously. "We gave him the Marauder's Map," Fred whispered. Caitlyn gasped, the cold revealing her breath.

"What? To keep? Forever?" She said, shocked. Fred and George nodded simultaneously.

"Not too loudly, now, someone will hear you. Besides, we have the whole map of the school memorized by heart." George said. Caitlyn nodded understandingly. She interlocked her gloved fingers in Fred's as they all walked to Hogsmeade together. They all split up when Fred, George, and Caitlyn left to go to Zonko's, leaving Catherin, Gaia, and Satoshi alone outside of the store, waiting for them.

"Sato, how come you didn't go with them?" Catherin asked. Satoshi shrugged. He randomly hugged Catherin.

"Hug me, I'm cold," He whined. Catherin patted his back, gripping his leather jacket in her hands. Gaia's stomach dropped. Seeing them like this…As if right on cue to get her mind off this scene, Seamus walked right in front of them. Her cheeks flushed, and Catherin pulled away from Satoshi, giggling.

"So, Gaia…" Catherin started slowly, smirking. Satoshi's face lit up.

"Oh, hey, Seamus!" He said enthusiastically, waving to the Irish boy. Gaia's mouth hung open. Catherin looked at Satoshi, smiling.

"So you know Gaia's little crush?" She said, waggling her finger at him. He nodded, but then did a double take.

"Whaaaaaat? Gaia likes him? Psh, no way! That's so cute!" Satoshi exclaimed.

"Delayed reaction, much?" Catherin giggled. Gaia felt like the world was ending.

The twins and Caitlyn walked out of Zonko's, carrying handfuls of bags. They all had a pleased smirk on their face, as if they were planning something devious. Though, knowing them, they probably were. Fred and George smiled.

"Oh look, George, it's Seamus. HEEEEY SEAMUS!" Fred cried out happily, waving his arm. Catherin smirked.

"Not again," She muttered. Fred, George, and Caitlyn all looked at Catherin quizzically.

"Gaia _fancies_ Seamus Finnigan." Satoshi said, laughing. Gaia crossed her arms, pouting. Caitlyn's eyes lit up, and she hugged Gaia. She started obsessing over how adorable it would be for them to get together. It wasn't until Draco Malfoy came running down the street when she stopped. She stepped in front of Draco, placing her arms on his shoulders and looking up at the boy.

"Draco, what are you doing?" Caitlyn said, cocking her head. Draco pulled loose from her grip, shooting her a look.

"H-Harry! His head, just FLOATING around! Oh…Wait until my father hears about this!" He huffed, marching away. His little clones (or bodyguards, as Caitlyn and Fred called them) scurried after him. Caitlyn glanced at Catherin, and she nodded. They both shrugged, and simultaneously they said, "Invisibility Cloak," Fred and George smiled, looking at each other.

"Blimey, they can do that too?" They said in unison.

"I thought it was something special only we could do!" George frowned. Catherin stuck her tongue out and put her hands on her hips.

"Well then _you_ were wrong!" She giggled. Satoshi smiled, putting his arm around Catherin.

"You tell em, Kit-Kat." He said, poking her nose with his forefinger. If it wasn't cold outside and her cheeks weren't already bright red, her whole face probably would've been crimson.

Caitlyn cocked her head. _Kit-Kat…how did he know that's what I sometimes call her? Or maybe he didn't…maybe he just called her that as some sort of a pet name! Are they going out? Oh, surely not, she would've told me and everyone in the school would've known by now. _Caitlyn remembered a time in her second year when Satoshi and she had dated. It ended out in disaster, though they still remained friends afterwards. After asking her out, he announced it to every passing person. So, in conclusion, if Catherin and Satoshi were dating then she would've known about it. One thing, however, was definitely true.

Satoshi Ueda and Catherin Lumbach were in love with each other, whether they knew it or not.


	16. Chapter 16

One frigid December morning, Gaia awoke with a start. Although her blue, unseeing eyes swept around the room in bewilderment, a blissful grin remained on her lips. Gradually, though, it faded. How did she get here, in her bed? Why was it so cold when it had been springtime a few seconds before? Just a moment ago, she was sitting on a bench by the lake, laughing joyously with-

"What's up with _that _expression?" Catherin asked during a yawn.

"O-oh… I had a… nice dream. Well, I assume it was a dream, it was one of those things that felt so _real _that I just can't believe it wasn't," she responded slowly, sluggishly sitting up and groping the windowsill for her glasses.

"You're lucky you fell asleep first, Catherin… I was the last to, and Gaia seemed to have a lot to say in her sleep," one of their other roommates grumbled. Propping herself up on one elbow, she tilted her head slightly. "Well, not a LOT really… She just kept saying this one word over and over. I couldn't really tell what it was though- Zaymass… Sames…"

Catherin's eyes widened, and she threw her hand over to mouth to cover her smirk. "Was it _Seamus _that she was saying?"

Their roommate snapped lazily. "Yeah, yeah, that was it. Now it's still only 5 in the morning… I'm going back to sleep." With that, she plopped down and fell asleep instantaneously.

Without saying anything, Catherin stumbled to her feet, grabbed Gaia by the wrist, and dragged her out of the room (which made her yelp). Since it was so early, they were alone in the Common Room; Catherin dropped Gaia in a squishy armchair, falling into one herself, and let out an earsplitting high-pitched giggle. "So now you're _dreaming _about Mr. Finnigan! Blimey, Gaia, this is too great! You totally _love _him!"

"I do not!" Gaia snapped. She shrunk down a size, lowering her voice. "You shouldn't use the word 'love' so lightly. There's no such thing as love at first sight, I strongly believe in that…" She yanked at her uncombed blonde hair, groaning quietly. "I don't understand, Catherin! I've seen him _once. _We've never even had a full conversation. He's younger than me and I don't go for younger guys. So why the bloody hell do I feel so… _drawn _to him?" Catherin hopped up, seating herself on the arm of Gaia's chair.

"You don't need to be a Seer to rightfully have a good feeling about something. Maybe you've just got good instincts!" she reasoned. Gaia shrugged half-heartedly. "Now, Ms. Robertson, tell me about this dream," Catherin demanded sweetly.

_No, you can't do it. You can't even tell Catherin, it's too embarrassing… _Gaia thought. After a pause, she said, "I can't. It's already slipped out of my mind- you know I like, never remember my dreams."

"Aw, that's too bad!" Catherin sighed with a pout. She stood up once more. "Well, I'm going to go get dressed, since I'm up already."

"Have fun with that. I'll uh, catch up with you in a bit." Catherin saluted, dancing back to her dorm. Normally, Gaia would have laughed at her friend's flamboyancy and perhaps joined in, but at the moment she couldn't even manage a smile. Of course she remembered the dream… She remembered it vividly…

The setting was the spot where Caitlyn and Fred had made a list of baby names the previous day. Gaia was sitting on the lake edge by herself, kicking her bare feet in the water as the giant squid made gentle currents. She was staring at her rippled reflection, her mind unusually blank, when a shadow stretched on the ground beside her. Eyes widening, she made to spot the source of the shadow, only to see another face make its appearance beside her own. "Oh! Seamus, hi!" she squeaked.

"Hey, Gaia. Mind if I sit?" he asked, motioning at the nearby bench.

"Only if you don't mind if I sit beside you," Gaia responded, grinning.

"Sure, be my guest," Seamus replied, returning her smile as he settled himself on the bench. Blushing at how cute he looked when he grinned, Gaia sat at his side.

"I know we barely know each other at all, but… I just feel like, we're meant to be," the Irish boy breathed.

"Wow, I know what you mean…!" Gaia gasped, her heart going _ba-dum _rapidly. Building up courage she'd never known before, the blonde reached out toward the Gryffindor's hand. However, before she could grab it, he wrapped his own fingers around her hand. Growing even braver yet, Gaia scooted closer and let her head fall into that space between Seamus's neck and shoulder. His smile softening, he placed his head atop hers. "This feels brilliant," she whispered.

"Absolutely," Seamus agreed. And then he did something that only a true Gryffindor would have the guts to do: he gave Gaia a kiss on the cheek. She blushed so deeply that she could feel heat emanating from her face; nonetheless, she giggled. That one joyous sound seemed to be contagious, because before long she and Seamus were cracking up, holding hands so tightly it was almost painful.

And then… it was just _over. _Gaia opened her eyes only to see the blurry image of her dorm's ceiling. In present time, she sighed and hugged her knees. She knew close to nothing about Seamus… Why was she having romantic dreams about him?

Meanwhile, Satoshi was getting a head start on his morning. Considering the time, he figured he would be the only one in the Common Room. However, he was wrong: an anxious-looking Seamus was already there with a tired Dean Thomas. Deciding it was never too early for some eavesdropping, Satoshi ducked into the hallway to his dorm and listened.

"So WHY did you drag me down here?" Dean yawned, rubbing his eyes.

"Sorry, I just can't stop thinking about this and I need to talk about it as soon as possible…" Seamus gulped, taking in a silent deep breath. "So recently… I met this girl. I'd tell you her name, but I'm afraid if I say it out loud I'll lose me mind…"

"I think you already _have_," Dean muttered. Seamus ignored the comment.

"See, she's a Hufflepuff, and she's blonde… She's a year ahead of us, I think." Satoshi felt his heart plummet to the bottom of his stomach. _He just described Catherin… _he thought bitterly. Normally, he had positively no hard feelings against Seamus, but all of a sudden he wanted him dead. "Oh, and she's got glasses," Seamus added. That one sentence seemed to fill Satoshi with unimaginable relief. Catherin didn't have glasses, so it wasn't her. He did, however, know a certain Hufflepuff fourth year who still fit that description… Smirking, he headed back to his dorm, but not before hearing Seamus say "I've always thought the whole 'love at first sight' thing was rubbish, but blimey Dean I don't anymore."

"Caitlyn, boy do I have news for _you_," Satoshi exclaimed after breakfast. He had pulled the Ravenclaw girl aside, making both her and Fred scowl. "You know how dear Gaia fancies Seamus Finnigan? Well, this morning, I may have heard a certain Irish Gryffindor declare he's falling for a blonde fourth year Hufflepuff."

"Satoshi, you just described my sister…" Caitlyn muttered. She didn't even try to hide the irritation in her voice: she desperately wanted to catch up with Fred. Even so, she was beginning to become interested in what Satoshi had to say.

"Ah, that's what I thought too at first, but then he said she has _glasses," _Satoshi explained._ "_Fortunate for him, if he had been crushing on Catherin I'd have to strangle the boy."

Smirking at the hint toward his affection for Catherin, Caitlyn's teal eyes sparkled. "So he likes her back! Brilliant!"

"I know right? And it's Christmas time… Which means one thing for couples."

"Mistletoe," they exclaimed in unison. They didn't need to communicate to start forming the same mischievous plan.


	17. Chapter 17

"Fred, doll, I have a bloody brilliant plan that you will absolutely _adore_." Caitlyn called the next day at breakfast. She ran up to the Gryffindor table and hugged her boyfriend around the arm (causing many distressed sighs and groans) and sat down happily on the bench beside him. She clasped her hands together, placing her forefingers at her lips. "Okay, so what we do is we wait until we see Satoshi and Catherin alone together, _fairly close to each other_, at that, and then use magic to make mistletoe APPEAR above their heads!" She clapped, indicating that was the end of her presentation. Fred was smirking, a pondering look on his face. He clicked his tongue.

"Brilliant. But we need a stereo or something. Like, to have _romantic_ music playing in the background while they share their sweet, sweet kiss!" Both Fred and Caitlyn laughed. Caitlyn's giggle, however, lasted only a few short seconds before her smile faded.

"This Christmas won't be as joyful as the last, though…with all the dementors flying around outside the castle. And we _know_ they're there; Dumbledore shouldn't try to act like they aren't." Fred cocked his head, glancing at the teacher's table up at the front of the Great Hall.

"He HAS been a little off lately, hasn't he?" He said.

"Well, he's always off his rockers but just recently he hasn't been as cheerful." Caitlyn added. Fred shrugged, shoving a mouthful of cereal in his mouth.

"Oh, and I'm warning you," He said, swallowing, "Mum made you a sweater this year, so be prepared." Caitlyn grinned.

"Oh, I don't mind! Your Mum is so kind, I just love her." At that moment the daily shower of letters and gifts came falling from the ceiling. The tawny owl that Caitlyn recognized as Persephone landed in front of her on her lap (she wasn't facing the table). Caitlyn looked at Fred, slowly untying the letter that was attached to the owl's leg. She unrolled the letter, reading,

Girls,

Your baby brother has been born. His name is Ethan Nolan and he was born just yesterday at 2:34 in the afternoon. I'm so happy, because I finally got that son. Remember when I mentioned how much I wanted one when we were in Diagon Alley? Now I'm happy. Your mother and I are so proud. Girls, we also swear he has the same nose as you two do, though we can't put our finger on whose side it comes from. From what we can tell he has my dark eyes and dark hair (finally!). I've attached a photo of him.

With all my love,

Father

Caitlyn gasped. She found the picture of the little boy sleeping. His little feet kicked around ever so slightly, and his little lips formed a small "o". Their father was right; the peach fuzz on top of Ethan's head was a dark chocolate brown. She showed the picture to Fred, who sighed.

"Aw, just imagine _me _writing a letter like this to _our _daughters one day…" He said. Caitlyn grinned widely, staring into her boyfriend's chocolate colored eyes.

"I wish that one day you will," Caitlyn said, lightly kissing Fred. George broke in, making a "tsk" noise.

"Are you _really _breaking the rules of Christmas by not kissing _only when there's mistletoe?_" He said, raising his eyebrows. Fred waved a hand at him as if to say, "Who cares, honestly?"

"We came up with a brilliant plan, George; I think you might want to hear it. We need your help with it." Caitlyn said, chuckling. She explained the plan to him, and slowly his expression kept getting the slyest look to it. "So what we need you to do," Caitlyn concluded, "Is find us a stereo. Play the music and leave Catherin and Satoshi in a room together. _Alone._" George nodded.

"And when shall this plan jump into action?" He queried. Caitlyn and Fred looked at each other. They both nodded, not even needing to speak to understand each other.

"Now!" Fred exclaimed.

Caitlyn was dragging Catherin by the arm to one of the empty classrooms. Catherin, of course, was groaning and giving Caitlyn a hard time. "What do you want?" She kept saying, but Caitlyn refused to respond. She flung the door to the classroom open, pushing Catherin in. She shut the door quickly behind her, using a spell to lock the door from the outside. Meanwhile, on the inside of the classroom Catherin was furiously tugging on the door handle, which to her disappointment didn't give way. When she turned around, she saw the shadow of a boy much taller than her leaning against the wall. The figure slowly opened the curtains, letting the light flood into the classroom. When he turned around, Catherin squeaked.

"S-Satoshi?" She muttered. Satoshi smiled, the warmth of the smile causing Catherin to blush severely. He walked over to her slowly, placing a hand on the girl's shoulder.

"I have no idea what we're doing. My crazy friends shoved me in here a few minutes ago." He said. Catherin looked down at the floor. "Was it your crazy sister who shoved you in here?" Catherin nodded, not taking her glance off her white and yellow sneakers. _I need new ones…_She thought to herself before looking up at the half Japanese boy. She swallowed, and she felt her hands shaking. She was alone in a room with the guy she really, truly, loved. Sadly, Satoshi didn't know how she felt. A sudden thought occurred to her. Satoshi's friends forced him in here…Caitlyn forced her in the room…Perhaps they were all scheming some sort of plan to get them together? At the last moment Catherin noticed a short staircase leading up to a landing and a room, just like the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom had. Only, at the top of this staircase and peering out the window of the office were the three faces of the Weasley twins and Caitlyn Lumbach. _Of course,_ Catherin thought. Catherin didn't even notice the soft music coming from a stereo perched up on the front desk. When she glanced at the window, Caitlyn and Fred were both waving their wands. Catherin's stomach dropped. They weren't…They can't…

In the office, the trio of troublemakers was cracking up. The mistletoe was slowly growing above Catherin and Satoshi, inching its way above their heads. Caitlyn was sitting on the ground with her fist shoved in her mouth, holding back her laughter. Fred and George, however, were both clutching their stomachs and shrieking with laughter.

"OH MY GOSH! THEY'RE GOING TO HAVE TO KISS!" Caitlyn exclaimed before stuffing her whole hand in her mouth. They silenced themselves, peeking out the window. They still giggled, though, because Satoshi and Catherin were slowly getting closer to each other as the mistletoe hung over their heads. Satoshi tilted his head slightly, giving Catherin a slight peck on the lips. Naturally, the three giggled. Both Catherin and Satoshi's faces were beet red. Caitlyn flung the door to the office open, rushing down the stairs and flinging her arms around Satoshi. "YES! YOU FINALLY RACKED UP THE NERVE TO KISS CATHERIN!" She squealed like a fan-girl normally would. Satoshi grinned slightly. In his head, he too was jumping with joy.

Fred grabbed Caitlyn by the arm, pulling her against his him, and kissed her passionately. George died laughing, somehow managing to hide the jealousness that was itching to rip out from his skin that Fred had a girlfriend. The two soon managed to get into snogging under the mistletoe, while George was lying on one of the empty desks clutching his stomach from laughing so hard.

Meanwhile Satoshi was gripping Catherin's wrists, holding them to his chest, and staring into her china blue eyes. Catherin had no idea what was going on. From the look on Satoshi's face, it told her that he wanted to kiss her more; longer, even. But he didn't. He just looked at her, their eyes locked with each other's. When Catherin made the mistake to look away for a brief second, she instantly regretted it. Caitlyn was being pressed against the wall by Fred, who in turn was sucking face with her. Catherin's heart skipped a beat. _Oh, Lord…_She thought. _Forget it, you'll never find each other's tonsils! _She wanted to scream at them, but she quickly averted her eyes to Satoshi, who was still looking at her.

"Kiss her, already!" Fred exclaimed.

"You'll never find true love if you don't attempt to find it first," Caitlyn chimed in, cocking her hips and placing her hands there. Satoshi cracked a smile, now looking at the couple who was just snogging not two minutes ago.

"I've already found it, and I don't need your help."


	18. Chapter 18

_My first kiss. Satoshi Ueda was my first kiss._ These words played continuously through Catherin's mind. She would absently touch her fingertips to her lips, her mind in a daze. She entered further into oblivion whenever she thought about how Satoshi- _the _Satoshi Ueda, who she used to fan girl over but now cared for with a legitimate passion- had indirectly said he loved her. This unfocused attitude caused her to bump into walls, trip over nothing, and have professors snap at her to pay attention. Her House members weren't entirely happy with her, seeing as she was the reason for Snape taking a considerable amount of points away from Hufflepuff. What, though, did that matter? Her lips had touched Satoshi Ueda's.

On another topic, Caitlyn and Fred seemed unable to go a long length of time without scheming, so soon enough they were plotting a way of getting Seamus and Gaia to kiss ("Because the best type of mischief is _productive _mischief, and what better production is there than romance?" Caitlyn had reasoned). Catherin and Satoshi's kiss had occurred in early December, so that still left plenty of opportunities for Gaia and Seamus's Yule time smooch. The closer Christmas approached, the more bushels of mistletoe sprouted throughout the school, which meant the more Caitlyn and Fred worked on plans.

"Catherin, dear, I've got a mission for you," Caitlyn called on about December fifteenth. Her twin was standing outside, dressed warmly in the frosty afternoon, hiding behind a corridor and watching Satoshi get yelled at for "borrowing" the Gryffindor team's Golden Snitch. Grinning as Satoshi strode away after blowing McGonagall a kiss, Catherin turned to face her sister. The Ravenclaw clasped her gloved hands, eagerness sparkling in her greenish eyes. "Alright, so Fred and I were going to have Gaia and Seamus kiss, as you know. However, something has… _come up,_ and we've decided to abort our mission. Well, not exactly _abort _it… See, we've decided to pass it onto you and Satoshi!"

Catherin stared at her with widened eyes. "Blimey, I feel so honored, being handed one of _your _jobs…" She cocked an eyebrow, a smirk twitching onto her lips. "What's come up? You two going to have a snog fest?"

Caitlyn placed her hands on her hips haughtily, huffing so that a puff of warm breath exploded into the air. "NO, but, let's just say we've got an… extra special present for dear old Snape."

An amused laugh exited Catherin's throat. "Ah, he hates us so much… Good man, good man." She linked her hands behind her back. "So anyway. Give me details of this matchmaking plan…"

"Good call." Caitlyn glanced around and leaned in close as if someone would overhear them, even though the twins were quite alone. "So. Before you girls head up to bed, grab Gaia and tell her you need her to accompany you on a little errand. I doubt she'll ask what, she's usually pretty nonchalant about that type of stuff… Satoshi is going to stop Seamus on his way into the Gryffindor common room, so that's where you'll take Gaia. Got it?"

Catherin gave a salute quite overdramatically. "Challenge accepted! I will NOT let you down!"

And Catherin kept her word. That night, Gaia was beginning to knock on the barrels that guarded the entrance to the Hufflepuff common room when her blonde roommate stopped her midway. "Hey, Gaia, I've got a little errand to run, but I don't wanna go alone… I'd take Caitlyn but she's off with Fred somewhere, probably sucking face."

"Mm, charming. Well, I'm up for a late night adventure," Gaia responded casually, swinging herself away from the common room door. Shocked at how well this was already turning out, it took Catherin a second to register the fact that she should start leading Gaia away.

The two girls strode through the hallways, blabbering on about stuff only people with their senses of humor could understand. Gaia was so absorbed in their random conversation that she was unaware of the unfamiliar hallway they were venturing down. Soon enough, Catherin came to a halt in front of the portrait of the Fat Lady, who was looking quite annoyed at what stood beneath her: Satoshi and Seamus chatting, just as planned.

"Well of course you'd root for the Irish team, it's your homeland," Satoshi was saying conversationally. "Then again, it's got some bloody brilliant players, why wouldn't you be on their side- Oh, Catherin! What a _surprise!_"

Simultaneously, Gaia and Seamus turned away from their friends with faltering smiles and mild confusion crawling onto their expressions. Their amused demeanors shattered like glass as their eyes met. _Holy crap… It's HIM…Am I dreaming? Or am I dead? I must be, I think my heart stopped, _Gaia thought rapidly. Seamus's mind was buzzing with shock; he developed the urge to locate Dean, point at Gaia, and shout, "That's the girl I told you about!"

The two hadn't even noticed that Satoshi and Catherin were backing away slowly, smirks of success etched onto their faces. "My, my, what's that on the ceiling?" Satoshi crooned, slipping his wand behind his back. Gaia and Seamus leisurely turned their gazes upward with expressions of fear, as if expecting a bloodthirsty type of monster hanging above their heads. They briefly reasoned that they may have been better off in that case: mistletoe was forming over them, some of its leaves and berries still in the process of appearing. The two of them gulped, feeling certain their bodies had turned to stone.

A few seconds passed, and they still remained frozen on the spot. The grins slipped off of Catherin and Satoshi's face; Satoshi made a hand motion for them to continue and Catherin lightly crossed her arms. When she opened her eyes from a blink, however, she gasped pleasurably to see that Gaia and Seamus were now facing each other, studying each other's faces. _Make a move, _both of them were thinking to no avail. So, _this _continued for a few more moments until Satoshi let out a groan. "Just DO IT already!" he shouted.

"There's uh, no such tradition in mistletoe, b-back in me country," Seamus stammered.

"Rubbish," Satoshi hissed. As if following out the same command from an invisible master, Catherin and Satoshi lunged forward: Catherin to Gaia, Satoshi to Seamus. They pressed their palms against the other persons' back, giving them a merciless shove. Although shocked sounds combining a shriek and a gasp started to escape Gaia and Seamus's mouths, the noise never made it far, for their lips were soon pressed against each other's.

At first, they accepted it, their muscles relaxing, their eyelids drooping, everything in the world melting away. Still, their minds eventually sprang back to life, commanding them to yank their faces back while becoming tense once more. Their feet, however, still seemed glued to the floor, so for at least 15 seconds they stood there staring into each other's eyes, their noses almost touching. _Again. Do it AGAIN. _But their thoughts were still not as demanding as they aimed for them to be, so they just stood there until Seamus piped up.

"I, e-er, gotta, Dean, waiting in the… dorm, y'know…" Abruptly turning beet red, Seamus stumbled over his own feet, stuttered a password to the Fat Lady, and clambered back into the common room.

"Well THAT went sort of well!" Catherin exclaimed. Gaia, who had been staring after Seamus without realizing it, gave a little jump.

"Catherin, Satoshi… I…" Gaia snapped her head around to face the two, glaring monstrously. "I'm going to bloody KILL YOU," she growled. Satoshi gulped, and with a squeak Catherin clung to his arm. Gaia yanked her blonde companion away from the Gryffindor boy… and gave her a hug. "Thank you, Cath… Thank you…" she whispered.

"I helped too," Satoshi reminded her with a slight grin. As if he had never said anything, or wasn't even there for that matter, Gaia strode away back to her own common room. This, of course, left Satoshi and Catherin quite alone. Their hearts plummeted to the bottoms of their stomachs as they became aware of this.

"That uh… That kiss was longer than ours," Catherin noted under her breath. Her hands immediately flung to her mouth; she suddenly had the urge to bang her head against a wall, like a disobedient House Elf. _Why _would she say that out loud?

Satoshi chuckled nervously. "You're right, it was… Pity." His dazzling blue eyes drifted up to the ceiling, where a fresh bushel of mistletoe still hung. "Might as well not waste perfectly good mistletoe."

_This is it_, Catherin acknowledged with a start, _this is the moment that has been in your dreams since he kissed you the first time…. _Yet something didn't feel right as Satoshi leaned in slowly- slower than slow motion. It took but a few seconds for Catherin to register the source of the uncertainty: Satoshi made the first move, and there was no way she'd grant him the satisfaction of making the second. That being said, Catherin laced her fingers together behind the taller boy's neck, stood slightly on her toes, leapt forward, and kissed Satoshi full on the mouth. A warm pride burst inside of the blonde Hufflepuff as Satoshi rested his hands on her waist, closed his gorgeous eyes, and contributed his own soft pressure into the kiss. This one was much unlike their first: it lasted at least 3 times longer and involved much more passion, yet it felt just as heavenly.

After a good 10 seconds, Catherin and Satoshi pulled partially away, opening their eyes in unison. Oblivious to the Fat Lady going "Awww," the two of them chuckled ever-so-slightly as they stared into each other's pools of blue. _Tell him, you idiot! Tell him you love him! _Catherin's conscience insisted. But she couldn't bring herself to do it, feeling unsure that the ground was still beneath her feet. Surely they were floating in midair, with nobody else besides the two of them?

Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end- or at least a pause. "Well, I best be going," Satoshi whispered. Since her tongue was failing her, Catherin simply nodded, quite disappointed to see the back of Satoshi's head disappear into his common room. As the Fat Lady's portrait swung closed, Catherin touched her fingertips to her lips once again.

"Alright, Freddy, pay up," whispered the pleased voice of Caitlyn Lumbach, ducking back behind the corner she had been peering around with her boyfriend for the past few minutes.

"Aw, come on… I mean, he got it started," Fred reasoned in a hushed, whiny tone.

"No backing down!" Caitlyn snapped, smirking ecstatically and poking Fred's freckled nose. "You bet me 3 Galleons that Satoshi would lead the second kiss. He suggested it, yes, but who kissed first? My sister, who I sided with for the bet." Caitlyn rubbed her thumb and pointer finger together. "Come now darling, 3 Galleons!" Grumbling under his breath, Fred fumbled through his bag and produced three shiny coins, plopping them into his girlfriend's outstretched palm. The blonde giggled, giving the ginger boy a peck on the cheek. "Nice doing business with you, Mr. Weasley."

"Yes, well, we've got some more _unfinished _business, Ms. Lumbach," Fred retorted with a sly grin.

The couple spent the next 5 or so minutes putting the mistletoe to further use.


	19. Chapter 19

Caitlyn giggled quietly to herself as she crept around the corner of the Potions Master's desk, placing a dungbomb carefully on the chair. She looked around for somewhere to wipe the grime off her hands, but eventually gave in and wiped them on her school robe. _No one will notice…_She thought while mentally laughing. She snuck slowly out the door when she heard muffled footsteps coming from Snape's office and ducked behind a corner to greet Fred. Fred was grinning, but Caitlyn placed a finger on his lips. She cocked her head in the direction of the classroom, hearing a small explosion as the odor filled the dungeons. Snape muttered quite a few words that Caitlyn was almost positive translated to something you shouldn't repeat. Caitlyn held back her laughter long enough to push her boyfriend and scurry up the stairs and fall onto a bench. After she collapsed into Fred's lap, however, her laughter escaped.

A small amount of pressure fell on her lips. She opened one eye, looking up at Fred, who was leaning over her. "Open your mouth," He said simply. Caitlyn obeyed, parting her lips. A sweet taste dropped onto her tongue, and she sat up quickly.

"Crystallized pineapple?" Caitlyn inquired. Fred nodded his head, his longish ginger hair falling over his eyes.

"I knew it was your favorite, so I got you some." He said with a smile. In his hand he clutched a small bag of the candy. Caitlyn cocked her head, raising her eyebrows.

"And _where_ did you get the candy, might I ask?" Fred grinned.

"I know people."

"People with the names of Mooney, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs?" She said, tapping Fred on the nose. Fred proudly placed his hand on his chest and nodded fondly.

"We owe a great deal to them." As he said this, Caitlyn's eyes lit up. She clasped her hands together, still sucking on the crystallized pineapple.

"I have a plan, Fred Weasley, and you're going to love it,"

Fred peeked around the corner, shushing Caitlyn, and pulled his wand out slowly. "_Lumos,_" he muttered. The light lit up on the tip of the wand, illuminating the hall. Caitlyn lit her own wand, creeping behind him. The Potions Master was shuffling around his personal storage of potions and ingredients, organizing bottles and vials. He walked quietly out the room momentarily and entered his office. Fred pulled Caitlyn by her wrist, slipping into the personal store. Caitlyn climbed the wooden ladder and reached for a small vial labeled "_Felix Felicis_" and shook it slightly, grinning down at Fred.

"Liquid luck," She whispered. She climbed slowly down the rungs, afraid it would creak, and the couple scurried quickly out of the dungeons. Caitlyn shoved the bottle into her jeans pocket along with muttering "_Nox_" to put the light of her wand out. They came up to the entrance of the Gryffindor Common Room and Fred kissed Caitlyn good night, stating the password and swiftly entering the door. Caitlyn crept through the halls, ready to enter her own Common Room, when she heard a soft "Meow". Her heart nearly stopped. She turned her head slowly, only to find Filch's dust colored cat sitting at her feet purring. Caitlyn covered her mouth with her hands, looking all around the halls. "Shut up, you stupid cat! You're going to get me a lifetime of detentions!" Mrs. Norris looked up at her with those yellow, lamp-like eyes, pawed at her leg, but continued to meow. "Shut the bloody hell up!" Caitlyn whispered urgently. As Caitlyn had feared, Filch came walking around the corner. His face lit up with shock.

"Student out of bed!" He cried. Caitlyn cursed under her breath, tugging on the end of her shirt in attempt to hide the vial of _Felix Felicis_ that was peeking out of her pocket. As if the horror never stopped, Professor Snape swiftly appeared around the corner. He squinted his black eyes at her, crossing his arms.

"I know it was you, Lumbach. Where's the potion?" Caitlyn raised her eyebrows, cocking her head.

"Professor, what are you talking about? The only reason I'm standing outside of my Common Room was because I got the riddle incorrect and no one came to help me. So," She placed her hand to her forehead and closed her eyes melodramatically, "I must sleep out here until morning when this damn bird will let me in." She opened one eye, peering at the teacher. Unfortunately, he didn't buy it.

"I know you and your boyfriend, _Weasley_, were sneaking around my personal store. So where is it?"

"Honest, Professor! I'm not lying!" Caitlyn pleaded, holding back the smirk on her face.

"Twenty points from Ravenclaw and a detention, Lumbach." _SUCCESS!_ Caitlyn thought. When Snape stepped up to the bronze bird, he answered simply in a tired tone and let Caitlyn inside. When the door closed, she pulled the elixir out and grinned.

Caitlyn fished her hand into her pocket, but the potion that she had just taken a few nights before was gone. Her eyes widened in shock, and she turned to Cho, who was sitting on her bed tying her shoes. "Cho…did you find a vial in my robes?" Cho shook her head, standing up. She pulled a brush through her shiny black hair.

"No. Why, is that where you were the other night?" Caitlyn smiled, nodding.

"Of course. Don't be ridiculous." She said, waving a hand at Cho. Cho shook her head, walking out of the Common Room. Caitlyn's heart was pounding. What if someone had taken it?

When she reached the Great Hall, she found her answer.

Catherin was grinning broadly and waving to everyone who passed, saying "Hello" in a cheerful voice. When she saw Caitlyn, her expression extended to ecstatic. She skipped to Caitlyn and hugged her around the neck, nearly strangling her. Caitlyn gasped slightly, coughing.

"Catherin, did you happen to find a vial in one of my robes and drink the contents of the vial?" Catherin's smile widened, if possible. She nodded quickly. If she went any faster her head would probably snap right off her neck.

"Oh, of COURSE. It was soooooooo sweet and now I feel all happy n' stuff!" Caitlyn glared at Catherin slightly, crossing her arms.

"Of course, ruin my plan…" She sighed. Catherin pouted slightly.

"Sister, dear, I'm going to go see the Headmaster in his office. Toodaloo!" She said, waggling her fingers and skipping away. Caitlyn groaned and fell onto the bench of the Ravenclaw table.

Catherin was laughing and skipping up the stairs, cheerfully singing, "_We're off to see the Wizard! The Wonderful Wizard of Oz!" _ Naturally, she found Snape on his way to his office as she was singing this. Snape glared at her, shaking his head.

"Which one are you, Lumbach?" He sneered. Catherin linked her fingers together behind her back and rocked on her heels.

"Catherin, sir."

"Ten points from Hufflepuff for cheerfully singing." He said, and with that he walked off, his black cloak billowing behind him. Catherin giggled, placing her fingers to her lips. She looked up at the ceiling, sighing quietly. A branch of mistletoe hung idly above her head. _I wish Satoshi was here to share this moment with me, _she thought, smiling to herself. Instead of going to the Headmaster's office, she turned down the hall in search of Satoshi. They would all be going home for Christmas soon, so why not? When she did find him, he was with the usual gang; Jeffrey, Lee, George, and Fred, who had a certain blonde clinging to his arm. She waved her hand enthusiastically at them.

"SATOOOOOSHIIIIIII HIIIIIII!" She squealed, running up to him and jumping onto him, flinging her arms around his neck. Caitlyn looked at the ceiling with just her eyes, a frown upon her face. Who knew what her twin would do when she was so high off of this Liquid Luck? Catherin dragged Satoshi by the wrist, Caitlyn thinking that she might've injured the boy. Catherin stopped as suddenly as she had started, grabbing Satoshi by the shoulders. She pulled him towards her, planting her lips on his. Caitlyn buried her face in Fred's shoulder, groaning with aggravation. Catherin was mental…she was just…mental. Catherin pulled away from Satoshi, a grin playing on her glossed lips. Satoshi was fighting back a grin. Caitlyn knew how much he liked Catherin.

Catherin definitely had improved; look-wise and personality-wise. Her blonde hair, instead of being the perfect bleach blonde that just made her look like a Barbie doll, was now a shade darker, with dark natural highlights. It was still noticeably blonde, however. It reached just down to her ribs, and she curled the ends. Her eyes, which used to be big and innocent, had gained an extra level of maturity to them. She was still the ditzy dumb sister of Caitlyn, but she was more deep and emotional than she had been. The makeup which had been so noticeable just the year before gave a natural glow to her face that she looked like a model. She wore a pleasant lilac eye shadow that brought out the blue in her eyes, and a light pink lip gloss that you could barely tell was there until she took it off so you could see the difference.

Caitlyn tugged on her hair, attempting to think of how she herself had changed. But no matter how she tried, she couldn't think of anything good. She had become more rebellious, she was getting into trouble more often (sometimes seeking it), and she wasn't obsessed with Quidditch as much as she remembers she used to. Caitlyn brought her hand to her mouth, staring at her sister and Satoshi. _They must really love each other, even though they don't know it. _Caitlyn thought. She looked up at Fred, and just because she was bored, she brought her hand to his face and turned it so he was facing her, and kissed him.

She snapped back into reality when George tugged on the end of her hat, indicating that Catherin was leaving her to go to Potions. Caitlyn smiled at Fred, hugging him, and scurried after Catherin. Gaia came around the corner, grinning slightly. She joined the twins on Catherin's right side, clutching her books to her side.

"Hello Catherin, Caitlyn," She said. Caitlyn did some sort of half-wave with her hand and Catherin grinned evilly. Her expression went dark, glaring into nothingness.

"I hate Snape. He took ten points from Hufflepuff for 'cheerfully singing'. God, the bitch. You know, I wrote a song for him. You'll hear it soon enough…" She said darkly. Caitlyn's eyes widened.

"Catherin…you never swear…" She gasped. What was this potion doing to her?

"Shut the bloody hell up, git." Gaia shrunk back, her footsteps faltering.

"I don't like this Catherin character…" She muttered. Catherin shot her a look of glass shards as she walked into the gloomy Potions classroom. She slammed her books down onto the tabletop forcefully. Caitlyn flinched, setting her books down as well.

"I thought Liquid Luck was supposed to make a person _happier_." Gaia muttered. Caitlyn nodded.

"It is. I don't know what's up." Gaia spoke too soon, however. By the time class had started, Catherin was grinning like a mad person. She looked slowly from Gaia to Caitlyn, and then raised her hand confidently. When Snape glared at her and said, "Yes, Lumbach?" she slowly made her way to the front of the classroom, standing a good five or six feet away from Snape. She raised her chin, and began singing.

"_I always hated you from the very start! So why the hell did you take ten points from Hufflepuff? But you know what? DAMN YOU, THAT'S WHAT! Ten points from SNAPE! Damn you, doo doo doo, damn you! Damn you, doo doo doo, damn you! Damn you, doo doo doo, damn you!"_ Imagine that being sung in the most cheerful and upbeat tune you can think of. This is how our lovely Catherin Lumbach sang her ode to Snape.

She took a quick curtsy and shuffled back to her table. The whole class was dying of laughter, Snape's face red with fury. The only ones, in fact, that weren't laughing or giggling were Snape, Caitlyn, and Gaia. Caitlyn and Gaia were betting on how Catherin would be killed; being hanged by her toes in the Great Hall or just by being cursed into insanity by Snape. Catherin, naturally, was beaming with pride.

As class went by, Caitlyn was shocked to see that Snape hadn't offered any form of punishment to Catherin. Caitlyn was sitting in intimidation, just wanting to see her sister get in some form of trouble. But her moment never came. At the end of class, Caitlyn took Catherin aside and wrapped her in a headlock.

"YOU IDIOT! DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH TROUBLE YOU COULD'VE GOTTEN INTO?" She screamed. The potion's effects were wearing off, so Catherin was beginning to be her emotional self again. Her blue eyes filled with tears, attempting to pull Caitlyn's arm off her neck. "CATHERIN, HOW COULD YOU BE SO STUPID? IF YOU DIDN'T DRINK THAT POTION IN THE FIRST PLACE, YOU NEVER WOULD'VE BEEN IN THIS MESS!" The tears were flooding down Catherin's face now. Caitlyn let go of her, but this time she gripped her shoulders tightly and looked her square in the eyes. "Catherin Serene Lumbach, I swear, if you ever pull something like that again…" She pulled out her wand, "I'm not afraid to use this. I WILL curse you into insanity if I have to, hell, I will even use an Unforgivable Curse. ANYTHING to protect you." Caitlyn said, tears now forming in her teal eyes. She pulled Catherin into a tight hug. "I promised Mum and Dad that I'd protect you, knowing you'd need me." She whispered. She felt Catherin's arms go around her back and tighten around her waist. Catherin buried her head into the place between Caitlyn's head and shoulders, sobbing. When the girls pulled away, Catherin smiled slightly.

"You know, you're only older than me by thirteen minutes, right?" She said. Caitlyn rolled her eyes, lightly hitting Catherin in the arm.

"C'mon, we gotta get to class," Caitlyn said, wiping a tear that had rolled down her cheek off on her sleeve. She could only imagine Fred's comforting words now: _"You wanna go prank Professor McGonagall?"_ he would say. Or at least some other teacher.

Satoshi's gang somehow managed to find them, and when Satoshi saw Catherin (her eyes were still red from crying), he quickly rushed over to her saying things like, "Is she okay? She was crying! Why was she crying? Oh my god…she's HURT, isn't she?" He wrapped his arms around Catherin. "You're okay, right?" Catherin nodded slightly, enjoying every last minute of this embrace with Satoshi.

Fred and Caitlyn had already found use to some mistletoe.

"Hey, Fred, Caitlyn…you have a Quidditch coming up, don't you?" Jeffrey spoke up. The couple pulled apart, their eyes wide.

"Oh yeah…So far we're at the top of the rankings." Caitlyn stuck her tongue out, making a peace sign with her fingers. "So good luck in beating us."

"With Harry on our team? No way we'll lose." Fred argued.

"Oh, you mean Harry, the Seeker with the chronic fear of dementors? Bring it!"

Caitlyn, that night before bed while stroking a purring Phantom, concluded that she had the most messed up life ever.


	20. Chapter 20

Surely, you know that when a person enters a hangover after consuming an alcoholic beverage, they receive pounding headaches and feel awfully groggy. Well, in Catherin's case, she was experiencing quite a different form of hangover from all that liquid luck. The mood that potion had put her in and the things it caused her to do (the lyrics to the song she sang to Snape quickly circulated around the school) would not soon be forgotten, so for the next few days she acted out of flustered embarrassment. She kept her head down and spoke only when spoken to, which was a wonderful change for some but worrisome for others.

There were two people Catherin was especially uncharacteristically timid around; the first was Snape. With that incredibly inappropriate outburst she'd expressed, _how _could she expect to live through another Potions class? She was so scared, in fact, that she constantly glanced around the hallways with the expectation of Snape standing around a corner, wand at ready. However, Felix Felicis did his job right and Snape seemed to forget about the Hufflepuff girl's little ode to him.

The other person was Satoshi. How, how, _how _could she have strode up and kissed him so casually? For a few days, she hated herself for doing it. But then, she came to a realization. He hadn't freaked out on her or anything… Surely he would have at least looked partially disgusted if he hadn't been okay with it? This got her thinking. That one time, he said he found true love already, shortly after he had kissed her… They'd fallen asleep on each other over the summer… They had shared 3 kisses at this point… That _had _to mean they were a couple now!

After she decided this, she set off to locate her assumed boyfriend. Instead she found her cousin, walking around with Lee and George. Fred must have been somewhere with Caitlyn. "Hey, Jeffy! Have you seen Sato?" Catherin inquired in a peppy tone.

Jeffrey's mildly pleasant expression faltered. "Oh, yeah, he's outside the Quidditch pitch… But Cath, I'll warn you-"

"Okay, thanks!" Obviously not hearing past "pitch," Catherin hugged Jeffrey before speedily skipping off. She would approach Satoshi, ask if they were a couple, he'd probably say yes, and they'd live happily ever after… Catherin was so naively sure of this. That being said, the sight that greeted her eyes once she reached her destination was like a slap to the face.

There was Satoshi, leaning against the wall of the Quidditch pitch… snogging a complete stranger.

For a second, she just stood there in shock. How could Satoshi be kissing another girl like that when he loved Catherin? Or, rather… How could he love Catherin when he was kissing another girl like that? She closed her eyes tightly, but not before a tear escaped. Suddenly wishing she'd die on the spot, she turned on her heel and bolted back inside of the castle. Satoshi never even glanced up.

Meanwhile, Gaia and Seamus were having difficulties in their nonexistent relationship. Whenever the two of them saw each other in the halls, they would either walk in the opposite direction or run past the other person, depending on where they were headed (Gaia refused to be late to class). Nonetheless, this awkward avoidance was, strangely enough, somewhat comforting. Before, they would keep their head down whenever they saw one another as if looking at their face would be like confessing their feelings as loudly as possible. Now, however, speeding past each other supplied them with an indescribable feeling of familiarity.

Things finally changed for them during about the same time that Catherin was searching for Satoshi with the idea that she was his girlfriend. Gaia was walking around with some Ravenclaw friends when she spotted Seamus practicing making a potion with Dean. Gaia muttered a good-bye to her companions, gathered up courage, and strode over to the Irish boy. The moment she opened her mouth to speak, Seamus stirred his potion the wrong way and it exploded in his face. Instead of words, a laugh exited Gaia's parted lips.

"Why is it that almost every time I see you, something is blowing up on you?" she giggled. Dean smirked and immediately shuffled away. Seamus glared at his best friend for a second before smiling awkwardly at Gaia.

"I guess that DOES seem to be a pattern, huh?"

Gaia smiled broadly. "Dude, you should see your face. It's _covered _in, er, soot? Grime? Potion dirt?" Seamus grinned; chuckling under her breath, Gaia pulled the sleeve of her robe down to cover her hand and wiped Seamus's face clean with it. "There, all better."

Seamus's smile softened. "Hey, I gotta tell you… That kiss, u-under the mistletoe…" Gaia felt her stomach drop. So _this _was what conversation they'd be having… "It was me first one… It was shocking, and sudden, but, I quite liked it…" he murmured. Gaia's eyes widened, and she felt her glasses slide down her nose as her cheeks burned red.

"Well, I'm gonna smack both of us if it turns out you're kidding, but I enjoyed it too…" Now Seamus was blushing as well.

"Oh, no, I'm not joking! I was thinking that maybe, you know, it'd be nice to have more opportunities to try it again on our own accords…"

"Are you asking me out?" Gaia questioned with a tilt to her head. Seamus smiled sheepishly.

"I'm trying to, yes…"

"Well then sure. Of course I'll be your girlfriend," Gaia answered without hesitation, surprised at her certainty. She leaned forward and pressed her lips against Seamus's cheek before climbing to her feet. "I'll see you around, then?"

"Ah, yeah… I'll see you…" Seamus replied in an obvious daze. Grinning uncontrollably, Gaia headed back to the Hogwarts castle, leaving her new boyfriend to touch his cheek airily.

"Satoshi Vincent Ueda… What was THAT!" Catherin shrieked later that day. Satoshi had strode back inside with his usual swagger, an air of magnetism surrounding him as always. His blonde Hufflepuff crush stormed up to him with her eyes puffy from crying. The confident smile vanished from Satoshi's features.

"Catherin? Oh my god, you were crying, weren't you? Of course you were, your eyes and stuff are all pink, what's wrong?"

"What's _wrong _is YOU!" Catherin retorted heatedly, getting as close to him as she dared. How odd it was, for her to be so near his face and desiring to claw his eyes out as opposed to give him a passionate kiss. Satoshi just stared at her blankly, so she got to the point. "I saw you snogging that random chick outside. I… I thought there was something special between _us_! Between you and I!"

"Oh… Oh, Catherin, I…" Satoshi looked overwhelmed with uncomfortable guilt. He abruptly grabbed Catherin by the shoulders. She flinched slightly, wanting to smack him away, but just couldn't. The way those beautiful blue eyes met hers… How could she hit him? "Look, I _like _you. I like you a _lot, _Cit-Cat! More than either of us could ever understand. But, we're still young and naïve and immature. If we started dating now, when we're basically just aloof kids rather we admit it or not, our chances of having a future together will be super low. So, if we wait until we're older and more serious about life to start a relationship, then it could actually last, and mean more than it ever could now." He paused. "Do you get what I'm saying?"

It was all Catherin could do to answer honestly. "I don't know." Why should age affect how much they loved each other? It was silent for a moment, until Catherin sighed partially. "Well, I guess I do see where you're coming from… …Yeah. I understand. So, for now, we can be… just friends?"

"Catherin. We can _never _be 'just friends.' You mean way too much to me. But we _can _be not dating. Don't think that changes how I feel about you…"

"How _do _you feel about me? You've never said it directly…" Catherin was fully aware of how childish the words sounded, but she just couldn't hold them back. Closing one eye lightly, Satoshi brought his pointer finger up to his lips.

"I'll say it flat out in, hm, about 3 or so years." He hugged Catherin, gave her a final longing stare, and swept away. Catherin bit her lip, absently recalling what it felt like when it had been touched by Satoshi's mouth. Was this what it felt like to be heartbroken? No… This was what it felt like to strongly look forward to something.


	21. Chapter 21

The past few weeks had been quite a rush. Word had gotten around that Harry Potter had gotten a Firebolt for Christmas, and Caitlyn, being the Seeker, had the most pressure lying on her shoulders. How she could compete with a Firebolt when she only had a Nimbus 2000, she did not know. Catherin's song had flown around the whole school. People everywhere were singing it, causing much distress for the teachers.

The day after the Quidditch game, Caitlyn sat in the library looking at nothing. They had lost the game, basically because a couple of stupid third year Slytherins dressed up as dementors and distracted her. She learned to never underestimate the power of Harry Potter. He had done some kind of a spell that Caitlyn _knew _they weren't supposed to learn until their later years, so how did Harry know it? She pulled the brim of her hat over her eyes in a frustrated manner, but immediately lifted it again when she felt the warmth of someone sit next to her and kiss her cheek. She smiled faintly. "Hullo, darling,"

Fred poked her forehead. "Why do you look so down? Look, sorry we won and everything-"

"Don't apologize, it was a fair game." She said, crossing her arms and looking at the table.

"I don't think so. You would've won if Malfoy and his stupid followers hadn't disturbed the game."

"Yeah, right." Fred tugged on Caitlyn's blonde hair, attempting to at least make her smile.

"Why're in such a bad mood? Cheer up!" He parted her lips with his fingers and popped a crystallized pineapple in her mouth. "Eat it." He said, grinning.

Caitlyn sucked on the pineapple, not saying a word.

Fred frowned. This called for more desperate measures. He cocked his head, placing a hand on Caitlyn's knee. "Caitlyn…do you know how much I love you?" Caitlyn said nothing. "More than you'll ever know." This made Caitlyn smile the slightest bit.

"I know…I love you too, Fred. Did you know that?" She said. Fred pursed his lips in mock concentration.

"No. I didn't." Caitlyn grinned now. "So tell me; why/re you so down?" Caitlyn's grin faltered.

"Well, I don't seem to…take Quidditch too seriously anymore." The Golden Snitch she had in the pouch at her waist hummed. "It's not on the top of my priority list anymore. I might pass the roll of the Seeker to Cho. I mean, she's good and everything…" Fred nodded.

"I've seen her when you are playing against each other. She is pretty good. I mean, she has a Comet Two-Sixty, that's nothing, and I don't like her theory of just following to try and get the Snitch." Caitlyn nodded in agreement.

"It IS a bit stupid, but I don't have the heart to tell her that. She should just use her eyes." Fred randomly hugged Caitlyn out of nowhere, causing Caitlyn's teal eyes to widen in shock. She slowly brought her own arms around his back, and Fred pulled her to her feet, not breaking the hug, as impossible as it may sound. His words tickled soft on her ear, whispering four words, "I love you, Caitlyn." Caitlyn felt her eyes tear up with joy, and she buried her face into his chest.

"I love you, too, Fred…" She muttered. A small first year boy had walked by, looking quizzically at the couple.

"PDA! PDA!" The boy shout-whispered. Caitlyn giggled, breaking her hug from Fred. She placed her palms together, her pointer fingers at her lips.

"Fred, darling, just imagine; one day we're going to have a little boy in Hogwarts." The boy's eyes widened, he shook his head quickly, and scurried away. Fred was grinning.

"You're messed up…you know that?"

Christmas break was coming up in just two hours. All classes that day had been canceled, and Caitlyn was packing her things to go home for Christmas. She felt a scarf get thrown on her head by Marietta. She tugged the scarf off, throwing it around her neck.

This year's Christmas would definitely be different. For one thing, there was a new baby in the house to deal with. Second, Caitlyn would be going to the Weasley's house for the first time ever. Third, Satoshi would be spending this Christmas with them at the Lumbach's house. As they were leaving the school and heaving their trunks to the train, Caitlyn couldn't help but wonder what her father would say about a _boy_ spending this Christmas with them. It was with good reason, too. Satoshi, being an orphan, really had no one but Shiro and Sakura left in the house. Naturally, being a fifteen year old boy, he would get bored. So he gave himself permission to stay with the Lumbach's.

"Catherin!" Someone called out from behind them. Catherin, who was beside Caitlyn wearing a heavy fur-lined jacket, whipped her head around. Their breath was visible as they caught up to the twins, huffing for she was running. The girl had longish black hair and hazel eyes, and when Catherin saw her, she went pale. "Um, hi…are you Satoshi Ueda's girlfriend? Bloody heck, I know you are. Anyways…I'm sorry for kissing him out there. On the Quidditch field the other day? I couldn't help it…he was there, and I just ha-"

"He's not my boyfriend," Catherin interrupted hastily. The girl's eyes widened. She opened her mouth to say something, closed it, but then opened it again.

"Catherin…I, um, always see you two together and…stuff. You guys, um, you KISS! I've seen you! And he's so _happy _when he's with you." Caitlyn looked up at the sky with just her eyes.

"Do you _stalk _them, girl?" She said simply. She looked the girl straight in the eyes. The girl's face was turning red, and she buried her face in her hands. When she lifted her face, a small grin played at the corners of her mouth.

"O-of course not. You must be Caitlyn, no?" She said, but as soon as she said it she turned on her heels and left. Phantom was hissing in her carrier, Persephone flitting around hers.

"Hush, you can come out on the train." Caitlyn said, lightly hitting the carrier. She felt the weight go to the back of the cage, which meant that the white cat was cowering in the corner. She rolled her eyes and proceeded to the train, unaware that her twin was still behind, staring at the girl as she ran off. "CATHERIN." She yelled impatiently. Catherin jumped slightly, rushing up beside Caitlyn. She smiled nervously. "What was that all about?"

"Er…I'm not too sure. That was a girl who was…erm…snogging Satoshi on the Quidditch pitch." Catherin explained quickly. She felt a pair of arms wrap around her neck.

"NINJA HUG! Hey girls." Catherin didn't have to turn around to know who spoke these words. She turned around and gave Satoshi a quick peck on the cheek. Caitlyn gasped in mock surprise.

"_Catherin_, you two aren't allowed to do that until you start dating!" She said in a high tone. Satoshi waved a hand at her as if to say, "Who cares?"

"We've both agreed that we will not date until we're older," The Gryffindor said. "Besides, I'm your best friend for like, EVER, so be nice to me."

"For like, EVER, huh?"

"Shush. I'm spending Christmas with you two. Be nice to me." He fingered Catherin's rainbow scarf that hung around her neck, also noting the rainbow earrings in her ears. He walked up the steps of the train and entered a compartment, the twins trailing behind. When they all got comfortable (including Phantom, who was let out of her cage), Satoshi leaned forward eagerly. "Catherin, do you like rainbows?" He said simply. Catherin laughed slightly.

"Er, I guess…"

"Well, first, rainbows are totally a turn on. Second, you _must_ meet Doodles. I think you'll love him." Caitlyn stared at Satoshi.

"D-Doodles? You mean, like, a dog or something?" She asked, a look of mild interest on her face. Catherin turned to Caitlyn, smiling.

"Of course that's what he means! Right, Sato?" Satoshi grinned widely, looking out the window.

"Sure. That's what he is." He muttered. The compartment door flew open, and the Weasley twins stepped in.

"CAITLYN LEIGH-ANNE LUMBACH. Why didn't you wait for us?" They both said in unison. Caitlyn pulled Fred's scarf, forcing him to sit next to her. She moved her face as close to his as she dared, both of their noses touching.

"Maybe I didn't want to," She whispered, pulling his lips towards hers. She pulled away, unraveling the scarf from his neck. "Fred, darling, I _am _able to come to your house for Christmas, right?" She inquired. Fred nodded quickly.

"Of course you are! You still have to meet Bill and Charlie and stuff…" Fred answered. George looked at his twin.

"And 'stuff'? What kind of 'stuff'?" He said, a mischievous grin on his freckled face. Caitlyn let a laugh escape her throat, quickly covering her mouth.

"You weren't supposed to _tell_ them, love!" Catherin's eyes widened as she pulled off her gloves.

"Ew, you sicko! That's just…ew…" She muttered, putting her head in her hands. Satoshi pulled her hands away from her face, lifting Catherin's face just the slightest and poked her nose.

"Then you better not tell them what we were going to do, Catherin." He said, grinning. Catherin's whole face went beet red, and the train began to move. Caitlyn looked at everybody, noting that they were missing people.

"Where's Lee, Gaia, and Jeffrey?" She asked. The two Weasley's sighed.

"Well, Lee stayed-"

"-and Jeffrey did, too." They said.

"Gaia's in a compartment with _Seamus_." Catherin said, hiding a giggle. Caitlyn looked at Catherin, and just by being sister they knew what the other was thinking without saying a word. They both cracked up laughing, falling back on the boys at their sides. Satoshi patted Catherin's head, smiling.

"They're so cute when they do that." He said. Fred chuckled, stroking Caitlyn's hair.

"Stay away from Caitlyn, got it?" Fred said. Satoshi saluted with two fingers, nodding.

"Yes, sir!" The twins' laughter died down, and when Catherin realized that she was lying on Satoshi, she quickly jerked up, her face reddening even more. Caitlyn giggled, still lying on Fred's lap. _She loves him…and he loves her. How cute…_Caitlyn thought. Of course, these thoughts always played through her mind, day by day. It was almost pointless to think these thoughts, but of course it was a teenage girl's instinct to. She turned her head slightly to look out the train window, smiling at the snow-coated trees.

"I love winter," She sighed. Fred looked down at her, expressionless except for the compassion showing in his dark eyes. He ran his fingertips along her jawline, watching Caitlyn's eyes as they closed gently. She smiled just the slightest bit at his touch, and at that moment something clicked. Fred realized that this girl, this little blonde Ravenclaw that he had only really started to know at the beginning of last year, really loved him. And he really loved her. While Satoshi, Catherin, and George were chatting about their plans for Christmas, Fred sat in silence, watching Caitlyn as she slept on his lap. He leaned down and kissed her lightly on the cheek. Caitlyn's eyes fluttered open, and she slowly pushed herself up into a sitting position using Fred's shoulders as a brace.

The other three students in the compartment didn't even notice when Caitlyn leaned against the window with Fred kissing her lips. She had wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing him back passionately. As much as Caitlyn loved this, it somehow felt wrong. She was fourteen, and already she was snogging her boyfriend in a train compartment. Caitlyn, however, didn't stop. Caitlyn felt Fred's fingertips run along the length of her spine, sending chills down her back. Fred pulled her closer to him, so they were practically hugging, except kissing. Caitlyn ran her hands through his red hair, the soft tresses falling between her fingers. The two pulled away from each other, but only their lips separated. They leaned together, their noses touching.

"'If you love somebody,' my mum always told me, 'show them.'" Caitlyn whispered airily. She kissed him one final time. And that's when she heard the giggling.

"Oh, how romantic!" Catherin sighed, clasping her hands together.

"It took a whole six minutes! That's a new record!" George exclaimed.

"Even _I _haven't snogged that long…" Satoshi trailed off, receiving a death glare from Catherin. Phantom jumped up on Satoshi's lap, purring and rubbing against his chest. Catherin rolled her eyes, picking the white cat up and cuddling it to her cheek.

"You're such a stupid cat," She muttered, handing the cat over to Caitlyn. She placed Phantom on the seat beside her, stroking her long white fur. She stared out the window, glancing at the cat beside her.

"You know…your fur is the same color as the snow."

The train ride had been long and slow. When the train reached King's Cross, everyone flooded out in a rush. Caitlyn had given Fred a good-bye kiss and George a good-bye hug before she ran off to her parents. Catherin dragged Satoshi by the wrist to her parents after Satoshi had said his good-byes to his siblings, telling them to be good and not get into trouble. When the three of them reached the Lumbachs waiting at the gate, they all gasped in admiration at the small baby boy in a carrier held by Mrs. Lumbach. Catherin buried her face into Satoshi's shoulder, smiling. He looked at Mr. and Mrs. Lumbach awkwardly, patting Catherin's head. "Oh, Satoshi, look how CUTE Ethan is!" She squealed. He nodded, grinning. He had been through this sort of thing so many times. He was used to babies. Catherin and Caitlyn, however, had never been around too many babies. Satoshi walked slowly to Mr. Lumbach, taking his hand and shaking it politely.

"Oh, thank goodness…a man in the house…But if you do ANYTHING to my daughters-" Anthony Lumbach started, but he was interrupted by Satoshi.

"Don't worry, sir. I specialize in taking care of young children, being a charming young man, and just being the light of the party. And I won't even think about hurting your daughters who are just two splendid young women." Catherin felt a blush rise to her face, but Caitlyn started dying of laughter.

"Sato, if you really meant half of those things…" She started, but was cut off by more laughing. Satoshi grinned at the Lumbachs.

"Oh, please. Without me, your life would be _boring_." Dianne laughed at his statement.

"Anthony, he reminds me so much of you when we were young…" She sighed, smiling. A look of shock flashed across Anthony's face. The twins looked at him.

"Daddy, you were a ladies' man?" They both said in unison, causing Satoshi to smile slightly. Ethan started to whimper, and Dianne looked at the clock on the wall.

"Oh, it's almost time to feed him…Come along everybody, join hands. We Apparated here, just to be quick," She said, and with that they all linked together, Disapparating out of King's Cross and to the Lumbachs' house.

A fire burned in the fireplace, filling the house with warmth. Anthony pointed down the hall, nodding at Satoshi. "There's a guest bedroom right across from the girls' room. You can put your things in there." Satoshi saluted, dragging his items down the hall. The twins followed him, turning into their own room. They noted how clean it was, with new sheets on the bed and the desks cleared off.

"Looks like Mum cleaned up a bit…" Caitlyn murmured. Satoshi peeked in the room.

"So _this _is the legendary Lumbach twins' room. Fred's told me so much about it!" He said, smiling at Caitlyn. Caitlyn covered her mouth with her hand, attempting to hide her blush. Satoshi moved towards the window, gazing out into the snow-covered yard. "And he wasn't kidding when he said you had a great view…Although I'm sure _that's _not what he meant," Caitlyn hit Satoshi lightly on the arm.

"Ew, sicko…We don't do that kind of stuff yet." She said, smirking. Catherin gasped slightly.

"'_Yet_' is the keyword in that sentence." She said. From the living room came a soft cry of a baby, but the cry moved off into the distance as Dianne swept into her bedroom to feed her son. Satoshi sat on the end of Catherin's bed, looking around the room.

"So what are we planning to do for Christmas? I've already got you guys your presents and everything…" He said, looking down at his feet. Caitlyn clicked the lock on her trunk open, pulling her clothes out and setting them on her bed. Satoshi watched her eagerly, cocking his head the slightest bit. Caitlyn glanced at him, pursing her lips.

"What, you waiting for me to pull out my underwear, you pervert?" She said. Satoshi nearly fell off the bed when she made this statement, just out of thin air.

"No, of course not! Question is…were you waiting for me to see?" He said, smirking. Caitlyn jerked her head around, refusing to look at Satoshi. Satoshi leaned back the slightest bit, crossing his right ankle over his left knee. "You know, you never answered my question."

"Oh, we're probably just going to have the whole dinner thing on Christmas Eve, then the whole present thing on Christmas…basic stuff like that." Catherin answered, swiftly sitting next to him on the bed. Caitlyn rolled her eyes.

"Blimey, mate, could you be any more specific?" She said, shutting her trunk and filing her clothes away in a drawer. She pushed the drawer shut with her foot, walking to the door. "I'll leave you two alone. Buh-bye." She waved with her fingers, exiting the room. Catherin blinked after her, feeling her heartbeat going faster and faster by the minute.

On the morning of Christmas, the twins awoke early and cheerfully. They both dressed in their best attire, which included curling their hair and wearing dresses. For Caitlyn, a knee-length crimson dress and bracelet of bells on her left hand. For Catherin, a knee-length emerald dress and a bell bracelet on her right hand. They both had a shimmering pink gloss on their lips, and each had strappy gold heels on their dainty feet.

Caitlyn ushered Catherin over to Satoshi's bedroom door (where he was still sleeping tiredly) and put a finger to her lips. She turned the doorknob, opening the door just a crack and peeking in. She giggled under her breath. "Alright, let's do this." She whispered to Catherin. Catherin nodded firmly, sneaking into the room. Caitlyn followed her, and they both sat on either side of Satoshi, leaning over him. Catherin brushed her hand over his cheeks, grinning with a sappy, acted smile.

"Sato, darling, wake up," She muttered sweetly. You can only imagine how Satoshi felt when he woke up and saw the two girls with their hair curled and all dressed up leaning over him.

"Bloody hell, is this a dream?" He muttered, rubbing his eyes and sitting up. Catherin wrapped her arms around his neck while Caitlyn hugged his arm.

"Sato, what makes you think that?" Caitlyn said, leaning her head against his shoulder.

"There are two pretty girls in my room on Christmas morning…" The twins both kissed his cheek simultaneously, getting up from the bed. Satoshi sat up, gripping a rainbow teddy bear in his arms. Catherin looked at the bear. When Satoshi saw her expression, he smiled. "This is Doodles…" He said. Catherin's lips curled into a smile. As they proceeded to leave the room, Catherin stopped at the door and looked down at the ground.

"Get dressed, love. It's Christmas." When she left the room, Satoshi couldn't help but smile at the nickname Catherin had given him.

When Satoshi entered the living room, the smell of bacon, eggs, and biscuits filled the air. Anthony was bouncing Ethan on his lap, Dianne was in the kitchen cooking, and the twins sat happily in two rocking chairs beside the fireplace. When he saw the twins, he felt his heart skip a beat. He was not dreaming that morning when they were in his room.

"Morning, Sato." Catherin giggled. Satoshi blinked.

"Uh, yeah. Morning." He glanced at Mr. Lumbach, grinning. "Ohayō, Mr. Lumbach." Catherin's eyes lit up.

"Oh, that means 'morning', right, Satoshi?" She exclaimed cheerfully. Satoshi nodded, sitting on the couch next to Anthony.

"Mind if I hold Ethan?" He asked politely. Anthony looked uncertainly at the boy, but then smiled, handing Ethan over to Satoshi. Satoshi rocked the baby boy in his arms. The baby's eyes were opened just the slightest bit, peering at Satoshi. His small lips formed the smallest of smiles, making Satoshi laugh under his breath. Catherin sat next to him on the couch, placing her hand on his shoulder and looking at the baby lovingly.

"You're so good with children, Satoshi." Catherin whispered. Satoshi gazed at her with his blue eyes.

"I've had a lot of practice." He said, grinning. "I remember when I was little I tried to hold Shiro when he was first born, but my dad said I was too young, so I threw a fit. And then when I was like eight I remember holding the twins…" Catherin leaned against his shoulder, brushing a few curls out of her face.

"You're going to be such a good father one day." She whispered. Anthony got up from his place on the sofa and entered the kitchen with his wife to help her cook, leaving the two alone except for Caitlyn, who was staring into nothingness, not paying attention to them.

"He's so beautiful…he looks a lot like you, Catherin." Satoshi murmured, letting Ethan suck on his finger. Catherin blushed, noting the hint from Satoshi. Dianne suddenly entered the room, grinning widely at Catherin and Satoshi. She clapped her hands together.

"Breakfast is ready, children. Let's eat!" She said. They all got up from their seats, Satoshi handing Ethan to Mrs. Lumbach, and went to the dining room to eat the well-prepared breakfast.

When everyone had finished eating, they all filed into the living room to open presents. They handed the presents out, gleefully singing Christmas carols as they did do. Dianne and Anthony sat on one couch while Ethan rolled around happily on a play mat hitting at toys suspended above him, the twins sat on the other couch, and Satoshi sat on the floor, leaning against this couch. They all opened the gifts, gasping in unison.

Catherin pulled out a pair of rainbow-striped knee-high socks of the box, hugging them close to her. She suddenly remembered what Satoshi had said about rainbows, how they were a total turn on. Satoshi looked up at her. "You like them?" He asked. Catherin leaned forward and kissed Satoshi on the head.

"Of _course_ I do!" She giggled. She opened her gift from Caitlyn, which was a set of new makeup. She smiled, shaking her head. "Thank you, Cait, you seem to know exactly what I need." Anthony opened his gift from Caitlyn, grinning as he pulled out a pair of new gloves.

"I knew those were the ones you wanted," Caitlyn said. Satoshi unwrapped a present from Catherin, laughing at the rainbow ribbon she had used to make a bow. Inside the box was a book. When he opened it, the pages were blank, with small labels on the side for writing.

"A photo album…" He muttered, grinning to himself. "Catherin, I'll be sure to have cameras in your dorm, room, bathroom, and any other place you happen to be," He said. Anthony stared at Satoshi.

"Boy, don't you dare even think about it…" He started, but Satoshi got up and hugged him.

"I'm gonna call you Dad. Can I call you Dad?" Satoshi said. Caitlyn put her head in her hands, attempting to hide her laughter. Dianne shook her head, laughing.

"Catherin, why can't you like Shiro? Oh, God…" She said between gasps of chuckling.

"Satoshi, I got Catherin new makeup. That should be enough for you." Caitlyn spoke up. Satoshi smiled slightly, just gazing at Caitlyn. Caitlyn laughed, pointing to a small box.

"I'm just kidding…here, that one's from me." Satoshi bent down to pick the box up and slowly un-wrapped it. Inside was a little Golden Snitch in a display case. He stared at it, his mouth hanging open slightly. "It cost me a fortune, but I just had to." Caitlyn said, waving her hand at him, causing the bells on her wrist to jingle.

"Thanks, Lyn." He said, grinning. Caitlyn nodded firmly. Dianne opened a box containing several feeding bottles, gasping and crying out with joy.

"Oh, thank _goodness_. I needed these so bad…" She sighed. Caitlyn picked up a box for her from Satoshi and sighed happily when she opened it. She had gotten _Quidditch Through the Ages._

"I remembered when you checked it out from the library you said that you wanted it." Satoshi said, shrugging. After everyone had opened the gifts and the parents left the room, Satoshi fished out two small boxes from his pockets. He handed them to the girls, and they looked curiously at him.

"Open it." He urged. They both opened the boxes, and gasped when they saw that they each had their names written in cursive hanging from a silver chain. "Now people will be able to tell which one of you is which." Satoshi said.

"Oh," Catherin gasped. "Thank you…" Caitlyn had clipped the chain around her neck already, fingering the cursive letters, but Catherin was still holding hers in her hand. Satoshi held his hand out for Catherin to take, and he pulled her to feet. He took the necklace from her, wrapping it around her neck and putting it on for her. Satoshi wrapped his arms around her neck and held her hands. Catherin sighed happily. "Satoshi, if I had a Sickle for every time you made my heart race…" She muttered. Satoshi kissed her on the cheek, falling back onto the couch.

"You _will_ wear those rainbow socks every day, right?" He said. Catherin nodded quickly.

"Every day until I have to wash them, of course." She smiled at Satoshi.

Caitlyn figured that this would be a long Christmas break.


	22. Chapter 22

Compared to most peoples' Christmases, Gaia's was remarkably uneventful; compared to the Lumbach twins', it might as well have been nonexistent. With her hair straightened, glasses replaced by contacts, and outfit consisting of a frilly, purple satin dress with white pantyhose and black Mary Janes, Gaia kneeled on the loveseat in her living room and stared eagerly out the window. It took a good 10 minutes for her bright gaze to falter, and after an hour her face was planted in the back of the couch. She knew her family was experiencing drama, yes, but she had at _least _expected her brother to show up for their Christmas party. Yet, that wasn't the case… Come 9:00 that night, her grandmother and aunt sadly said good-bye to her and headed out the door, leaving it at just her and Mrs. Robertson.

"Gaia, honey… I'm sorry…" her mother murmured, sitting by her daughter's side and stroking her back. Gaia heaved a sigh, kneading her temples.

"Don't apologize, _you _didn't turn all our relatives against each other… _You _didn't prevent Jonathan from so much as stopping by… You worked your butt off to throw a good party, it's not _your _fault there were only four of us…" The invisible fist squeezing Gaia's heart tightened its grip as her muttered words caused tears to jump into Mrs. Robertson's eyes. She sighed once more. "I'm going to bed… Merry Christmas, Mum…"

"Merry Christmas, darling… You look _beautiful, _by the way."

Gaia smiled weakly for a fleeting moment as she staggered to her feet. "…Thanks, Mum."

The train ride on the way home, though, had been pleasant. Gaia sat in a compartment with Dean and Seamus, getting friendly with her new boyfriend's best friend and learning much about Seamus. She was educated mostly in stuff about the Finnigan family and told him about her own. It wasn't very exciting, but still quite pleasurable and interesting: every single second spent getting to know Seamus made Gaia gradually like him more and more. From his Irish accent, to his perfect height, to his being a mama's boy, to his habit of blowing things up, to his blue eyes, to his nearly childish attitude, to his sand colored hair, his features made Gaia know it was very possible that she could fall in love with him.

Heading back to Hogwarts was even more fun. Gaia sat with Catherin, Seamus, and Dean: a combination she found unexpected; Catherin eventually admitted that if she sat anywhere close to Satoshi, she would be far too tempted to cling to or kiss him. Formally, this would have made Gaia clench her fist and feel nothing but bitterness. Now, however, she simply rolled her eyes and grinned at her friend, the experience of holding Seamus's hand and sitting close beside him making a bad mood impossible on her part.

"Where'd you get those ridiculous socks, girl?" Gaia questioned at one point, sitting cross-legged on the booth with the leg of a Chocolate Frog in one hand, her head leaning against Seamus's shoulder.

Giggling, Catherin kicked her feet up and down a couple times. She was currently wearing a skirt just long enough to not break school rules with simple shiny black buckle shoes, making her knee-high rainbow socks extremely evident. "Satoshi got them for me for Christmas… Now everyone'll spot me from a mile away, huh?"

Gaia laughed joyfully. "Absolutely. They're totally sexy, them socks are."

"Great grammar there, love," Seamus laughed.

"Hey! Me grammar be bestester than you's is!" Gaia snapped. She let out an overdramatically huffy sigh, whipping her head away from her boyfriend. After a few seconds, though, the couple both shared a laugh and snuggled against each other.

"You two are so. Bloody. CUTE!" Catherin squealed, smacking her palms against her cheeks. Gaia pressed her hand against her own chest, taking a bow.

"Thank you, doll."

Upon their return to school, drama was quick to spring up. After eating their fill, the blonde Hufflepuff friends slunk up to their common room with content yet tired smiles. They were just about to sit themselves in some armchairs when someone tapped Catherin on the shoulder. She halted and turned around, so Gaia did the same. The serene grin slipped off of her face at the sight that met her eyes: standing right there was her ex-boyfriend.

Things had been remarkably different between them since their hasty breakup: they barely acknowledged each other's existence anymore. In fact, Pauley's happy gaze was glued to Catherin, though it was as if he was completely unaware of Gaia's presence. "Catherin Lumbach, correct?" Pauley chimed. Catherin blinked in confusion, having never spoken to this fellow Hufflepuff before, and offered a half-hearted smile.

"Yep, that's me alright…"

"Well, I've heard a _lot _about you over the years, and Catherin, I was wondering if you'd like to go out with me," Pauley indicated in an upbeat tone. Smile fading and eyebrows arching up behind her bangs, Catherin stared at him as if he had just delivered the news that she was to marry Fred Weasley. Gaia's face twisted into a rather unattractive state. How _dare _he ask out her best friend? The _nerve_! She was positively over him- she doubted whether she had ever been into him at all- so jealousy was certainly not what overwhelmed her with the urge to strangle Pauley. No, she was acting out of pure disgust.

"Pauley, you can_not _ask her out!" Gaia growled. Pauley's huge grin remained, but the joyous confidence in his eyes shrunk.

"How peculiar, I've been told Miss Lumbach here is single… Plus I wouldn't think you would care, since you've been spotted snogging Seamus Finnigan," he countered.

Jaw hanging agape in surprise, Gaia's face turned beet red. "Snog-? Seamus and I have kissed _one bloody time!_" she howled. Her blush intensified even further when the few other Hufflepuffs in the room turn to look at her after that declaration.

A spite that Gaia didn't know someone like him could muster entered Pauley's tone. "I do know that I'm not good at all this boyfriend stuff, but I _do _know that the girl I'm asking out should be the one responding, not her cruel friend."

"Cruel?" Gaia sputtered. She crossed her arms with an irritated sigh, refusing to meet Pauley's eyes. He seemed, however, to take this as a victory.

"So, Cath? Shall we date?"

Catherin let out a nervous, high-pitched laugh that started with a snort. "First off, please don't call me Cath, only my close friends call me Cath… And, I'm flattered, but I'm sort of spoken for!"

"Oh? How peculiar, I was told you didn't have a boyfriend." The pout on Pauley's face made him resemble a begging puppy.

"Well, it's uh, complicated. We don't want to start dating until we're older, but we really like each other a lot… So I really don't want to be in a relationship," Catherin explained hurriedly. She paused before adding even quicker, "Plus no offense, 'cause you're nice, but I wouldn't want to be your girlfriend…" With a small squeak, she grabbed Gaia by the wrist and bolted off into their dorm.

"Ew… Ew, Sato, _ew, _guess who asked me out yesterday?" Catherin groaned the following afternoon. Satoshi tapped his quill against his lip in mock concentration.

"Hm… That cute little second year Gryffindor with the camera, Colin Creevey?" he guessed airily. Catherin lightly smacked him on the arm.

"Wow, you're right! _No, _it was Pauley McNiffle. You know, Gaia's obnoxious ex that found everything 'peculiar'?"

Satoshi gagged visibly. "From what I know, he means well, but that kid's a real wackadoodle." A note of seriousness washed over his face, and he put on a natural yet not fully intentional seductive expression. He set down his quill, leaned slightly forward, and cupped Catherin's chin in between his pointer finger and thumb. "Besides: you're _mine,_" he purred. A half chuckle sounded in his throat. "Just kidding, that wouldn't be fair, seeing as I'm still dating whoever I want… You can be with anyone you choose, just try not to fall in love with any of them…"

Catherin partially raised one hand and placed the other over her heart. "I swear I'll try not to replace you. It isn't like I could find someone better, anyway…" Satoshi grinned, and then turned his gaze to Gaia as she pored over a Defense Agaisnt the Dark Arts essay.

"So, what does Miss Robertson have to say about this Pauley thing?" he questioned. Gaia glanced at him over the top rim of her glasses- the sight of Satoshi Ueda no longer fazed her at all.

"He's got good taste in women. But seriously, all in all I don't exactly give a crap. Remember that _I _dumped _him." _A grin playing on her lips, she leaned backward and stared up at the wispy clouds in the blue-grey sky above. "It's hard to think much of _anyone's _love lives, when the one I've got with Seamus is consuming me so nicely."


	23. Chapter 23

"Pauley? That kid that found everything peculiar?" Caitlyn cocked her head at Catherin, the latter sitting comfortably on a bench in the hall. Catherin waved her hand at Caitlyn.

"Yeah, him. So he asks me out, _totally _unaware that Satoshi and I-" Catherin stopped short, glancing at Caitlyn, "Well, we aren't together…just…together."

"Reserved for each other."

"Yes. Reserved." Caitlyn cracked a grin. She pulled Catherin to her feet, dragging her around the corner.

"Look, you can't go out with Pauley. He's…_Pauley_. So do us all a favor and STAY RESERVED." Caitlyn leaned in, dropping her voice to a whisper. "Because only Satoshi finds those socks incredibly sexy." She placed a hand on Catherin's shoulder, swiftly turning away. Progressing down the hall, she literally ran into George. She grinned, looking up at George. "Hullo, George. Fancy seeing you," She said. "Do you have a Valentine?" George shook his head.

"Nah, but I'm sure I'll find one." He said, shrugging. Caitlyn averted her eyes to the ground, smiling.

"You know, we're hardly ever alone. Fred's always with us."

"It's a bit strange, yeah."

"I reckon you're different from him." Caitlyn said, looking into George's eyes. George stopped walking briefly, but continued.

"Why do you say that?' He said. Caitlyn sighed, looking at nothing in particular.

"Well…You're gentler. Yes, you're both very rowdy, but you're kinder. Like he's the one who comes up with the ideas and you follow. Like you know when enough is enough." Caitlyn said, a hint of admiration in her voice. The two walked down the hall, but only for a short distance before they sat on the sill of a window. Valentine's Day was coming up, and George didn't have anyone to call his Valentine. At one point, Caitlyn jokingly offered to be his Valentine, but he softly declined, laughing. Little did Caitlyn know that in his eyes he held a loving look of compassion. She was too blind to see this compassion, for she was used to it swimming in Fred's eyes that she never saw it in other's eyes.

"Caitlyn…" George said suddenly. Caitlyn looked up, grinning.

"Yes, George?"

"I…well…I might have to steal my brother's Valentine." He said. Caitlyn blinked thrice, cocking her head.

"Which…which brother?" But before she could fully compute what George had said, she felt a warm pair of lips pressed against her own. Her eyes widened, taking in the feeling of this sudden kiss. To people around them, this would look quite normal. Caitlyn was always seen snogging the red-headed twin of George, and people usually couldn't tell the difference between the two.

To Satoshi Ueda, however, this was a horror film.

The school had gone out to Hogsmeade on Valentine's Day, with couples kissing every corner they turned. Just based on the context we all know what Caitlyn and Fred had done. However, Caitlyn couldn't get out of her head how similar the twins' lips felt against her own. She knew she shouldn't have been thinking such thoughts, but she couldn't help it. It was natural teenage instinct. Gaia had soon gone running off to join Seamus in Hogsmeade, laughing gleefully when he wrapped his arms around her shoulders. Catherin and Satoshi walked hand in hand, swinging their arms to the beat of their footsteps. George had found happiness with some other friends, while Fred and Caitlyn were left alone to snog happily. They eventually found themselves bored of the kissing, so instead they walked around, playing jokes on unsuspecting peers. Once or twice they had passed the same couple, and both times they "threw" rocks at the couple's head. They were an older couple, perhaps seventh years, and they finally got up and rushed away after about the fourth rock.

The second couple they found was Catherin and Satoshi. Fred and Caitlyn entertained themselves by levitating small objects onto the ground in front of them to see if Satoshi and Catherin would trip. Once, Catherin slipped on the ice (to Caitlyn and Fred's disappointment, not by their flying objects) and nearly fell backwards, but Satoshi had caught her. Catherin's hair fell in frames around her already red face, and she giggled as Satoshi hauled her upwards. She balanced herself on Satoshi's shoulders, not wanting to fall again.

Caitlyn was still fairly bored, even while watching this scene.

Even when she was with her boyfriend. She felt somehow guilty for kissing George, even though she knew that it was he who had kissed her first. When Satoshi, glanced behind him, and noticed Caitlyn was looking at him, he gave her a sad smile and whipped his head back around. Caitlyn's face must've turned bright red, for on instinct she buried her face in her hands and fell onto a bench. Fred's eyes widened and he sat next to her. He placed his arm around her shoulder, kissing her forehead. Caitlyn couldn't help it; she broke down into a fit of sobs, the hot tears running down her cheeks. Fred took his gloved hand and wiped the trails of tears away.

"Lynn, what's wrong? You can tell me." Caitlyn shook her head furiously.

"N-no, no I can't…y-you'll bloody k-kill me…or h-him…" She muttered.

"Caitlyn Leigh-Anne Lumbach." He used her full name, taking her shoulders and forcing her to look at him. "What did you do?" That tone of voice he used, so sincere. It made Caitlyn dry harder.

"G-George…he bloody kissed me, bloody h**l, he's bloody mental, bloody b***h!" Fred stared at her in shock.

"He…he what?" Fred stood up from the bench, looking around. "Why, when I find him I'll-" Caitlyn grabbed his wrist and pulled him back down on the bench, hugging him close. She sobbed into his shoulder.

"N-no, don't do anything…please…" She pressed her mouth to his; hard. She didn't want him to doubt her, think differently about her. So she showed her love through this kiss, out in the cold, on February fourteenth. Yes, it would've been a bit more romantic if the dementors hadn't been floating around the streets, but it was still the best kiss by far that Caitlyn had shared with her boyfriend.

The next few days had been quite relaxing. Padma, Cho, and Marietta had all gone downstairs to the common room to relax by the fire, Arietta had gone to the library, and Caitlyn just sat on the couch, listening to Padma chatter on about her Valentine's Day. She sighed, closing her eyes just slightly. She looked over at Shiro, who was sitting at a table with Michael Corner, Terry Boot, and Anthony Goldstein. She locked gaze with Michael, who instantly looked away, a slight blush on his cheeks. She listened instead to their conversation, finding it much more interesting than Padma's. Anthony nudged Michael in the arm, earning him a glare from the dark haired boy. Caitlyn's eyes widened slightly: Michael was a bit of a creepy boy. Caitlyn buried her face in her hands; she would've even preferred HIM to kiss her over George. Unable to keep tears from flooding down her cheeks, she fled to the dorm rooms. The girls by the fire looked back at her in shock.

"Did I say something?" Padma asked, glancing at the others.

Up in the dorms, Caitlyn fell onto her bed, hugging her pillow close to her. "I can't believe him…" She muttered into the pillow. She was thankful no one was in the room at the time, for she didn't want them to see her lose her edge like this. She pulled her knees to her chest, throwing the pillow to the end of the bed, and laid her forehead on her knees. She let the tears fall, pouring out her feelings.

How could she ever face George again?


	24. Chapter 24

The first day of March brought marvelous weather. A few wispy white clouds floated across a baby blue sky; the giant squid dangled its tentacles lazily above the water of the black lake; birds whistled somewhere on Hogwarts grounds. It would have been the perfect day for a stroll, if the dementors weren't floating around everywhere.

Still, the chill-inducing cloaked figures didn't prevent Gaia from sauntering around outside with a few friends: Konata Verdent, Blaze Alexanders, plus a couple Ravenclaw girls and a Gryffindor. As they struck up a conversation about Herbology class, Gaia halted for just a second and took a double take. Although she immediately returned to walking in stride with her companions, she still had not completely caught up mentally. She had always quite considered herself more of a nobody. Yet, how could a nobody be best of friends with Catherin Lumbach and close to her twin sister, both of whom were part of the same group as Satoshi Ueda? Not to mention there were the five girls walking around with her currently… There were quite a handful of guys she joked around with in the halls and at meals, plus she was friendly with lots of fellow Hufflepuffs and a few other Gryffindors and Ravenclaws… She even got on well with a couple Slytherins.

Gaia couldn't help but smile to herself. Bloody hell, she was actually relatively _popular. _Her mental Self Esteem Bar, which had been dangerously low before she started dating Seamus, skyrocketed.

"Hey, guys, don't look forward to Potions today," one of the Ravenclaw girls noted. Gaia arched an eyebrow, smirking slightly.

"Oh, how could I _ever _not anticipate that absolutely wonderful class?" All the other girls laughed; Self Esteem Bar highness: 95%. The girl who had spoken first rolled her eyes, grinning.

"Snape's in an _especially _sour mood today, and seeing as he's always so… _Snape, _that's saying something," she indicated. Plopping herself at the base of a column in the outdoor corridors, she tilted her head slightly. "I wonder why that is?" The Gryffindor girl that wasn't Blaze narrowed her eyes and leaned against a different column. All the other girls situated themselves on benches.

"I'll bet it's got to do with one of the Weasley twins, they're the worst to him. If not them, then George's- er, Fred's- oh I don't bloody know which one- girlfriend, that Caitlyn Lumbach…" The girl flipped her long dark hair showily with her eyes closed. "She's a right bitch. I _hate _her." Gaia jerked her gaze up so quickly that her glasses nearly fell off her nose.

"You take that back! I know Caitlyn, and even if she is kinda… I dunno, _obnoxious _at times, she is not a BITCH!" she insisted. "And you shouldn't hate someone you barely know," she added. One of the Ravenclaw girls pouted like a puppy getting scolded.

"But, Gaia… Haven't you heard the rumors?" She glanced around nervously as if she'd receive a year's worth of detentions for verbalizing whatever she had on her mind. The girl nervously began fiddling with her braid. "Maybe Caitlyn's really nice- I see her in the common room all the time, she sure seems like she is…" Her squeaking voice was now barely audible. "Don't you know that she's hitting on every single boy in her year?"

It was silent among everyone for a few seconds. Gaia wanted to snap back at her immediately, yet found that her tongue had become temporarily tied. Was this true? Oh, how could she even ask herself that! Of course it wasn't true! Caitlyn loved Fred so much… She even talked about having children with him all the time…. But was he the only one? Wanting to smack herself, Gaia gulped. She wasn't terribly good of friends with Caitlyn- not as much as they had been when they were younger, at least; still, she refused to believe that she was _that _type of person. "That's so stupid," she sighed after a while. "Caitlyn would never cheat on Fred, I know it." The girl that had declared that she hated Caitlyn began to speak, but Gaia interrupted with: "Just keep your damn mouth shut."

Blaze adjusted her blue rimmed glasses, biting the inside of her cheek lightly. "I'm not one to believe those dumb rumors, but you can't help but hear them circulate… Apparently, George is trying to break Fred and Caitlyn up."

Under normal circumstances, Gaia would have threw her hands over her mouth and gasped overdramatically, with an exclamation like "Oh HEAVENS no!" However, this wasn't just ordinary teenage drama: this involved people she knew personally. The Hufflepuff opened her mouth to counter Blaze's information, but let her jaw fall slack. Honestly, she was unable to confirm that it was false. Out of all the members of Satoshi's main little group, she knew George the least. Nothing seemed off; he was setting off dungbombs, striding around with his twin, making mischief, and occasionally showing off to girls just as he always had. Yet, was there something hidden beneath that constant grin of his? Some intense jealousy, some individual plan gone too far…? Caitlyn _did _appear ever so slightly more down lately… Was she in on George's-

"Wow, poor Caitlyn's life is so screwed up… People think she's a whore, her boyfriend's brother might be trying to make a move on her, her own twin sister is a flunky…" one of the girls was saying. That caught Gaia's attention.

"Flunky? What?" she sputtered. Konata sighed, clenching her delicate fists.

"Oh, I've heard those too… People seem to think that Catherin is going to get sent home from Hogwarts because she's doing so poorly in school. Some say it's because she's just plain a brick head, others believe she's so absorbed in her love for Satoshi…" She rolled her green eyes slightly. "Those two aren't even dating, for goodness sake," she murmured.

"Now that's ridiculous! Catherin's a bit ditsy, yes, but she isn't _stupid! _Her grades are just fine!" Gaia snapped. A fire of certainty burst instantaneously inside of her as she sprung to her friend's defense. Nonetheless, after a couple seconds of glaring at nothing, her shoulders slackened and the flames fell weaker. She _was _right… Wasn't she? Come to think of it, she _never _had discussed grades with her best friend before, only good friends… She felt herself begin to bite her lip. No matter how close they were, Gaia always knew somewhere inside that there was a fence between her and the life of the Lumbachs. She had a bit more than a general idea of what went on for them, yet never knew all the special details… This fence was, somehow, one of the reasons her Self Esteem Bar never reached 100%. For all she knew, Catherin _could _be failing school, and she could be having a secret relationship with Satoshi Ueda.

She remained silent.

Konata shook her head quickly, her light brown hair smacking her in the face. "Okay, can we please stop talking about this…? I hate gossip, it's so bitter, let's talk about something else…" She smiled meekly at Gaia. "So what's it feel like, being with Seamus?"

A small grin allowed itself to creep onto Gaia's face. Dream-like? Beautiful? Indescribably brilliant? Almost perfect? "Like you need to ask about what it feels like to have a boyfriend…" She gently nudged Konata's knee with the toe of her moccasin. "How's Mr. Longbottom doing?" She winked and chuckled under her breath as Konata's cheeks flushed red.

"Well, ah, he's doing just-"

"People are talking about you and Seamus too, y'know," interrupted the one Gryffindor girl. Gaia and Blaze both glared at her.

"Konata was talking," Gaia mumbled. Her blue eyes bore into the Gryffindor's brown ones. "Besides, I couldn't care less about whatever they're saying." Despite the confidence with which she spoke, Gaia couldn't help but realize she was shaking inside. How many people were talking about her? What did they have to say?

The Gryffindor girl glanced away and squinted. "People are laughing at the fact that you're a cougar."

"I don't CARE what people are saying!" Gaia shouted, as much to herself as the others. With a groan, she clambered to her feet and jerked her head in the direction of the school. "Come on Konata. Let's leave." The two Hufflepuff girls started to walk off, until the girl with the braid called: "But Gaia… People you guys don't even know think that Seamus is using you for… for your body!"

Gaia stopped dead in her tracks.


	25. Chapter 25

"That son of a bitch, calling ME a whore…hell, no, I'm not a damn whore…" Caitlyn muttered, glaring into nothingness. She continued to put every curse she knew into every one of her sentences when Catherin groaned and hit her on the back of the head. "OW, BITCH."

"Pull yourself together, Caitlyn! They are just rumors! Doesn't mean they're _true_!" Caitlyn turned to her twin, her anger increasing by at least ten points.

"_Just _rumors? _Just rumors? _CATHERIN! Everybody thinks you're flunking, people think I'm some freak who cheats on her boyfriend for a kick, they think Gaia's being used for her body…DON'T YOU SEE? These freaking (she used a different word, but we like to substitute) rumors have to end!" Catherin whimpered; she hated it when Caitlyn got angry. Caitlyn's expression went from anger to fierce terror. She pulled her wand out from her robe pocket, twirling it in her hands. "I could always…ah…get _rid_ of those bitches…" Catherin snatched the wand away, backing away from Caitlyn.

"No way. No ma'am. You will not even think about it." Catherin was treading on dangerous waters; she flashed back to a time in their second year when Caitlyn had gone out with Satoshi for a few days. It ended in a brutal getaway on the stairs by Satoshi and fifty points off from each House. Catherin extended her arm away from Caitlyn. Caitlyn had jumped on Catherin's back, clawing for her wand. "Caitlyn, you psycho! Stop it!" Catherin grabbed Caitlyn's wrists (which were threatening to choke Catherin) and pulled them off of her throat. She pushed Caitlyn away, tears stinging at the back of her eyes. "What the HELL is wrong with you?" She shrieked.

Caitlyn sat on the grass, sobbing. "Cath…stop it…stop keeping me from what I want…"

"You want to kill yourself?"

"If it stops George from liking me and these freaking rumors to stop, yes!"

Catherin looked down at Caitlyn sadly; throwing Caitlyn's wand on the ground, she turned on her heels and fled back to the castle. "Sometimes I don't know who you are, anymore, Caitlyn!" She called behind her.

Caitlyn stumbled to her feet, grabbing the wand off the ground. "If this is how you want it, -_incarcerous!-" _The ropes bound around Catherin, causing her to squeal and fall to the ground. "—then this is how you get it! _Accio wand!" _Catherin's wand flew from her pocket and into Caitlyn's hand. Catherin looked up at Caitlyn, the pain clearly etched in her eyes.

"Caitlyn, stop! We've never fought, and I don't want to start now…" Caitlyn laughed; it was high-pitched and evil sounding. "Lyn, these stupid dementors are getting to you! Go inside, release me…Please…" Caitlyn grinned maniacally. With a wave of her wand, the ropes uncoiled. She threw Catherin's wand as far as she could, smiling sickly.

"Fetch," was her last word. Catherin scurried to get her wand, letting her tears fall.

Caitlyn lay on her bed, facing the ceiling. She knew she had gone too far out there. Maybe she _was_ cut out for Slytherin. For all she cared, someone could kill her right now. In fact, she mentally wished that someone _would _kill her. That Cho or Arietta or _someone_ would just fire _Avada Kedavra _at her and get it over with. She wanted to be left alone. Why couldn't the world just go away? Leave her to mope over her feelings alone?

This could possibly count as the worst school year ever. George had feelings for her, Catherin and she was fighting, stupid rumors about her were flying around the school, the crazy dementors made the whole atmosphere gloomy, and Sirius Black was loose from Azkaban. Could it get any worse?

"Satoshi, I need help." A distressed Fred said one day during dinner. Satoshi, in the process of shoving a roll in his mouth, looked at Fred. "Caitlyn is…all screwed up. She's depressed, she's lost her cool…What do I do?" Satoshi chuckled.

"Fred, all you have to do is get the girl in bed. That'll make her feel better!" Fred glared at Satoshi, obviously finding this information useless. Satoshi put a finger to his chin, looking up at the ceiling. "Now, if you can get her pregnant, that'd be better…" Fred sighed.

"Satoshi…that won't work. I mean, she isn't like that. Yes, she may seem it…" Fred put his head in his hands. George swallowed. He knew he was to blame for this whole thing. He didn't look at Fred or Satoshi. Instead, he focused on talking to Lee to get it out of his head.

"How do you get away with that kind of thing?" Jeffrey inquired, turning to Satoshi.

"I'm a bloody orphan. I can do whatever the hell I want." Satoshi said with a hint of laughter in his voice. But in his eyes was sorrow. He blinked back tears, staring down at his plate.

"She's gone mental. I'm terrified of her." Fred muttered. Caitlyn slid onto the bench next to him, her expression blank.

"Afraid of whom." She stated. She didn't smile or anything; just a grim look to her face. It was obvious she hadn't slept: Her hair was pulled into a messy ponytail, her face was free of makeup, her tie wasn't tied (it hung loose around her neck), her collar was popped on one side and folded down on the other, dark circles hung below her eyes. In other words, she was a mess.

Fred jumped when Caitlyn had sat down. She glared, as if planning the world's demise. Fred kissed her cheek gently, but she didn't react. "I _asked, _afraid of whom." She snarled, "_Not _for you to kiss my cheek." Fred moved away slightly, looking at Satoshi as if saying, "See?" Jeffrey put an arm around his cousin, smiling widely at her.

"Lyn, let's just leave it at 'someone you don't know'." Caitlyn glowered at him, causing him to remove his arm from Caitlyn's shoulder. Fred groaned, getting up from the bench and stomping off to his Common Room. Satoshi blinked after him, sighing.

"See what you've done, Caitlyn?" He joked, but it only made Caitlyn huff and get up as well.

"Shut up, bastard." She said, walking away. Satoshi sat in silence.

"Me? A bastard?" He muttered when she had gone from earshot. George gazed after Caitlyn, letting out a slow sigh.

"It's because of me. Ugh, I'm such an idiot!" He moaned.

"Wait…what did _you_ do?" Satoshi said. A look of shock and terror ran across George's face.

"N-nothing! I just…" He ran his fingers through his red hair, "kissed her…" He murmured. If Satoshi had been drinking, he would've spit out whatever he was drinking. Instead, he dropped his fork. Jeffrey had dropped a whole goblet of pumpkin juice, spilling it all over the table.

"You WHAT? Bro, you can't just kiss your brother's girlfriend! Oh my god…" Satoshi coughed out. George face-palmed.

"I know! But I was…caught up in the moment. I was curious why Fred always snogs her…" Lee glanced at George, just now joining the conversation.

"What? You kissed Caitlyn? Oh my…" He said.

"I know, just shut the bloody hell up…" Satoshi tugged on a strand of his wavy brown hair, groaning.

"Everything is so screwed up right now."

"Tell me about it."


	26. Chapter 26

As it always does, time passed by. For a while, things didn't get better, while on the upside, they didn't get worse. After about a month, however, things simply were unable to remain within grasp.

Fred tried and tried to uphold his relationship with Caitlyn, but to no avail. It came to the point that he had no choice but to give up. On the inside, that probably destroyed Caitlyn like a blow with a knife, though nobody would be able to tell: she was so forgone that she already looked like the witness or victim of a tragedy. Instead of being the Caitlyn Lumbach everyone knew- the one that was the life of a situation, played pranks on her professors while maintaining notable grades, and snogged Fred Weasley- she acted barely human. She just sat hunched in the corner of the Ravenclaw table, if she bothered to drag herself out of bed. The very sight of Caitlyn with her increasingly thin build, shadowy eyes, and unkempt hair was enough to keep anyone and everyone away. She was a human ticking time bomb; there probably wasn't one person who didn't expect all that bottled up agony to explode in some way. From what people could see, Caitlyn had zero interaction with Fred, her sister, Satoshi and his group, or any of her fellow Ravenclaws… Nobody besides her unfortunate self.

Misery circulated around the people she had been in acquaintance with. Fred was distraught at their unspoken breakup while George was overwhelmed with guilt; so much for the ever-loved-and-admired Weasley twins. Catherin was often caught crying silently in class and at meals whenever thoughts of her sister or any bitter rumors that involved their friends crossed her mind; no more ditsy blonde Hufflepuff. Satoshi tried so hard to be his usual self when out in the open, but how could brightness come easily when most of the people he cared about were trapped in so much darkness? To escape it all, he made a habit of checking up on his siblings often, which didn't entirely help (especially since Shiro was a friend of Caitlyn's as well). With the pressure of keeping up an almost impossibly cheery demeanor while being a good big brother, he was nearly driven to tears. Jeffrey and Lee also found themselves unnerved, with the drastic changes in all of their friends. Gaia, too, was a different person, mainly since she was having rumors gnawing at her just as they were at Caitlyn; who knew when she'd snap as well? It was just a vicious cycle.

A couple months passed since Caitlyn had seemed to drop off the face of the earth. Gaia was heading back from Herbology, keeping her head down for she had kissed Seamus right before class and knew her peers that had witnessed it would be snickering or staring. She jumped with a dog-like shriek as she felt a hand grip her shoulder. Glasses falling askew, she spun around to see she was being approached by Professor Sprout. Her shoulders fell in relief.

"Gaia, dear… Are you doing alright? I've noticed you've seemed… off, lately. I should have asked earlier, I'm sorry, but you just seem like the type of girl who's able to fix things out on your own."

"Oh, er, thanks…. I'm usually that type of person, yeah," Gaia murmured. She bit her lip gently, totally prepared to remain silent until the professor walked away. Nevertheless, after a few awkward seconds she found herself pouring out her thoughts. Caitlyn's detachment, Satoshi's out of character behavior, the rumors involving Seamus, Catherin's sadness, Jeffrey and Lee's concern, the Weasley twins' guilt… Details about all of these things were spoken. Professor Sprout knitted her eyebrows together sympathetically.

"Oh, heavens… How about this: I'll speak to the headmaster, and let him know these awful rumors are circulating, and have him say a few words about it. I won't give him any names, so as not to embarrass anyone," she offered. Gaia nodded slowly, semi out of breath from rapidly letting loose so much that had been on her mind. Professor Sprout patted her shoulder reassuringly. "Head on to class, now. Don't worry, everything will be under control." The relief those words supplied was so enormous, it almost had substance.

Sure enough, Dumbledore stood in front of everyone the following day at lunch. "My sources have told me that some students have been sharing some bitter information, most of which I am sure is false, about each other. Each one of my students deserves to feel safe here at Hogwarts, not to mention these rumors have been disrupting some peoples' academic performances. I must ask that any cruel gossip come to an end, or the consequences will be dire," he had announced.

A whole week passed without one nasty stare or spiteful whisper.

"F…Fred? I want to talk to you," Caitlyn croaked about a week and a half after Dumbledore's warning. The Weasley twins had been heading up to bed with their friends. Satoshi, Jeffrey, Lee, and George exchanged glances, then quickly swept off to the Gryffindor common room. Slowly, Fred turned to face his assumedly ex-girlfriend.

"I, see you've fixed up your hair…" he commented awkwardly. Caitlyn glanced to the side at her thoroughly brushed and washed hair as if to confirm something had been done to it, but otherwise ignored Fred's remark. She began to rub her arm, which hung tensely at her side.

"Look, I… I guess an apology can't nearly make up for all the trouble I've caused…" she muttered. Fred's eyes bore into hers with a serious intensity they so rarely contained.

"You're right, it can't. Because actions speak louder than words." Without any further talk, Fred lunged forward and gave Caitlyn a very gentle kiss on the lips. Her immediate reaction would have been to push him away, but then memories of snogging under mistletoe, amongst laughter, and in all sorts of other locations washed over her…. She closed her eyes (just as a tear escaped) and kissed him back.

"I've been so, so, _so _STUPID, Fred! All those disgusting rumors just overtook me… Plus I guess there's just been this crazy… _stuff _lurking in the back of my head, waiting to make its appearance… School work, and my hidden doubts of being a good girlfriend, and the full reality of having a baby brother just mashed up into one thing and POOF! I lost my mind." She rubbed her forehead feverishly. "That time when I tried to kill Catherin, and all those suicidal thoughts I had… They're like a bad dream now! Or some hangover memory, or _something…_"

Fred chuckled humorlessly. "Lyn, hush. Even _if _actions are louder than words, your jibber jabber is giving me a headache."

Caitlyn seemed to shrink down a size. "Sorry... Wait, dann, sorries don't mean anything. I-"

"Woman, shush!" Fred interrupted. "If you want to make it up to me," Caitlyn nodded vigorously, "then be my girlfriend again, and be the real you. Be my Lovey Dovey Muffin Face McCutiekins with Sugar on Top again."

It was silent for a few seconds as Caitlyn waited for Fred to continue. When it was evident that he was done, the blonde blinked. "That's… it?"

"That's all I wanted from you before." Fred suddenly tilted his head thoughtfully. "Hold the phone, there _is _one more thing I want from you: kiss me and really mean it." Without delay, Caitlyn did exactly as she was told. Her hands gripping his shoulders, his one arm around her waist with the other stroking the back of her hair… With the utter emotion of the moment considered, _this _took the crown for their best kiss ever.

"Does George think I'm mad at him? Because I'm not… That was some dumb s**t he did, but I'm not mad," Caitlyn murmured once the couple came up for air, their noses touching and both of their eyes closed. Fred shrugged slightly.

"I dunno. He blames himself for all this, but I don't know what he figures you think about him. I'm glad you aren't pissed at him, though. That'd just create even more drama."

Caitlyn nodded her agreement, a smile creeping onto her face for the first time in a long while. "And we could sure do without more drama."

Although Caitlyn and Fred's romance was mended almost as perfectly as possible, the same couldn't be said with Gaia and Seamus. In fact, everything was falling apart for them. You would think that the removal of all the sick rumors about their relationship would lighten the load on them, but no: the resistance against everyone else's fantasies involving them was like a glue that bonded them together.

"It's never going to be good enough, you know," Seamus indicated as they sat scribbling away on their homework. Gaia didn't notice that her boyfriend's quill had stopped scratching until now, even though it had halted a few minutes prior.

"Well you're very specific," she snickered. The smile slipped off her mouth, though, as she noticed the grim expression on the Irish boy's face. She put down her books and turned toward him.

"Having all the rumors stop circulating. Nobody's talking anymore, yeah, but that doesn't stop people from _thinking _those things about us."

This sent Gaia's mind into temporary blankness. "But, everybody shut up about it…" she responded dumbly.

"Did you hear anything I just said?" Seamus sighed.

"Uh huh, but-"

"Gaia… I think, we should give everyone _nothing _to say involving us anymore." Chest tightening suddenly, Gaia stared at him blankly and allowed him to continue. Seamus gently took her hand in his and whispered, "They can't talk if there isn't anything between us anymore."

_Crash. _Gaia's heart seemed to explode into a million pieces as realization dawned on her. She spoke the simplest thought that had shot into her head: "You're breaking up with me, aren't you." Her mind was so mixed up that she even stated the question.

For a moment, Seamus seemed caught off guard by his own actions. Scrambling to his feet, he muttered "Yeah" before dashing off. If only Gaia had took note of the tears in his eyes… She sat there, feeling numb and quite dead, a single thought- or question, rather- making itself clear: _What just happened?_


	27. Chapter 27

The next few weeks had been easier on everyone. Except for the fact that the Weasleys, Satoshi, Lee, and Jeffrey had OWLs ("They're a bloody nightmare, OWLs…" Fred had said), everything was back to normal. Caitlyn herself has started wearing her normal makeup (though it looked a bit funny on her, since she was still so thin). She began to socialize with her normal friends, even some new ones, and her clothes weren't fitting so loosely. She was more cheerful than usual, in fact. Almost as if she had been on Liquid Luck.

Caitlyn noticed one day in Defense Against the Dark Arts that Lupin had been looking ill again, but she didn't mind all that much. She also noticed that Harry, Ron, and Hermione had all gone missing one night. Like she cared. She didn't care about anything in the world at this moment. The world was like happiness; she felt so uplifted now that she and Fred had gotten back together. When her classes for the day finished, she skipped down the hall to the Common Room. After answering the riddle, she skipped into the room, sneak-hugging the younger Ueda boy.

"Hola, little friend~! Who are your little friends here?" Caitlyn said, totally unaware of her saying "little friend" twice. She grinned at Michael (who had a slight red glow to his cheeks) and hugged him around the waist from behind. She leaned her chin on his shoulder, smirking. "I know you. You're Michael Corner." Michael squirmed from her arms, his face bright red.

"Y-yes…" He stuttered. Caitlyn put her forefinger to her chin, glancing at Terry Boot and Anthony Goldstein.

"I don't know you two. I mean, I do…but…" She wrinkled her nose in deep concentration, but after a minute or so her smiling-giddy face was back.

"You seem to be in a good mood." Shiro said. Caitlyn nodded quickly, grinning like a maniac. She waved her hand dismissively.

"I feel better than EVER! And I have a plaaaaaaaaan." She said, skipping off.

"A plan. Her plans are never good." Michael muttered, running a hand through his long, dark hair. Terry nudged him in the shoulder.

"You love them, anyway." Michael sighed, shooting him a glare. Caitlyn danced over to a bookshelf, pulling a book out of its place on the bottom shelf. She opened its cover, falling into one of the cushioned chairs. Her happy mood had gone as quickly as it had come; in fact, she seemed normal.

"She's so bipolar!" Michael gasped, a look of shock on his face. Caitlyn flipped the pages until she came to a certain page, and her face lit up. She slammed the book shut, jumping up from the chair.

"I'm going to need help from Fred with this one…" She giggled, swiftly moving past the group of Ravenclaw boys and out the door. She frantically ran down the stairs, ramming into Fred. "Ah ha! Just who I was looking for! Look, I need your help with this one. Think you can do it?" Fred smiled warmly at her. At least she wasn't screwed up as she had been.

"Of course, Caitlyn." Caitlyn clasped her hand in his, walking down the hall.

"So, I was thinking. What would happen if Snape's potions were terribly mislabeled?" She said, looking up into nothingness. Fred's eyes lit up.

"You mean…?" Caitlyn nodded, looking into Fred's eyes.

"Yes." She giggled. They both knew they wouldn't really do any of that. Doing that sort of thing was beyond their knowledge. "Come along, then. Time for dinner." They walked, hand in hand, to the Great Hall, separating at the door. Fred quickly kissed his new-old girlfriend, letting his lips linger on hers for a while before he walked to his own table. Caitlyn closed her eyes, smiling slightly.

She was blissful. She knew that even though they've had troubles, she knew that she and Fred could hold their relationship together. Who knew that she, once a girl who just fancied Fred Weasley, would be in love with this redheaded boy?

The rest of the year had pretty much gone swiftly. With Fred's last year of school coming up, Caitlyn spent every waking hour with him, making sure to keep their relationship going. Many had noticed a small fact about Caitlyn; she'd been apologizing for nothing, and had become more polite. Her devious nature was disappearing. This new Caitlyn, people admitted, was more terrifying than when she was on her "Emo Mode".

Catherin, in turn, had become by far closer to Satoshi. She spent every moment she could with him. She wasn't a clingy fan girl; in fact, Satoshi quite enjoyed the attention from her. In the halls, students would often see them walking hand-in-hand. During meals, one of them would sometimes sit at the other's table. They would have cute couple moments, though they refused to call themselves a couple. One day, while Catherin was saying good-bye to her Hufflepuff friends at King's Cross, Satoshi came up from behind and pulled the hair tie out of Catherin's hair, letting the gold locks fall to her shoulders. Her eyes widened, turning around and flinging her arms around Satoshi's neck. Satoshi kissed her cheek (several of the nearby girls glared with jealousy). "I like it down," He said, grinning. Gaia, who was watching this moment, smiled slightly, hiding her depression of recently breaking up with Seamus.

"Satoshi, my dear, we must spend the summer together!" Catherin giggled. Satoshi poked her nose, making Catherin go cross-eyed.

"The whole summer."

"You can come see Ethan."

"Of course. I'll take him home with me."

"I'll help take care of him."

"He'll be like our own little baby."

"I would want nothing more."

"CATHERIN, SATOSHI, STOP MAKING OUT AND GET OVER HERE." Caitlyn shouted from across the platform from where she was standing next to her parents. The two looked slowly to Caitlyn, grinning. Satoshi put a finger to Catherin's lips, smirking.

"My house. Tonight. Wear clothes that are easy to take off." Catherin nodded, a smile tugging at her lips. The both walked over to the rest of the Lumbachs, Satoshi letting Ethan grip his finger. He glanced at Mr. Lumbach, smiling softly. "Can he walk yet?" Anthony shook his head.

"He's learning, though." Satoshi nodded, using his other hand to pat the boy's head. Mrs. Lumbach cocked her head.

"Do you want to hold him, Satoshi?" Satoshi's eyes lit up.

"Sure! I…yes!" He exclaimed, taking the small child from Dianne. He put his nose to Ethan's, smiling when Ethan giggled. "He's so adorable…" Catherin clasped her hands together, sighing happily.

"Aw, look at you! You're like…his father! He loves you so much." She said airily. Caitlyn coughed, backing away.

"I'm going to go tell Fred and George good-bye…" She said before rushing off to find Michael Corner. When she found him, she smiled softly, rushing up and hugging him from behind. Michael jumped slightly.

"What the he-" He turned around, seeing Caitlyn. "What are you doing?"

"I feel like we're friends. So I wanted to say good-bye to you." She said simply. She kissed two fingers and patted his cheek, skipping off. Michael put a hand to the cheek she had indirectly kissed, a small smile forming. An arm was flung around his shoulder, again causing him to jump.

"Blimey, mate," Shiro said, "but I reckon you're in love."

"You're one to talk…cough, cough, Konata…" Michael walked away to his own parents, leaving a very shocked Shiro standing there, his sister Sakura asking if he was okay.

The car ride back was long and boring; Caitlyn had fell asleep on Catherin's shoulder, Catherin against the window. Mrs. Lumbach looked back at them, sighing. "They're fifteen, and they're still taking naps. Even Ethan's awake." Ethan cooed softly from his little seat as if agreeing.

"You tell 'em, Ethan." Mr. Lumbach chuckled. He sighed, leaning back in his seat. "Do you think we can trust that Satoshi kid with our Catherin?" Dianne glanced at her husband.

"What? Of course! He spent Christmas with us, remember, Anthony?" He nodded, looking at the road ahead of him.

"Yes…but…he just seems like the kind of kid who would pull any girl into his bedroom and get her pregnant without even looking back." Dianne gasped, looking at Anthony with pure shock.

"Anthony! Don't you dare say such a thing about our daughters' friend! Don't forget that that's exactly what my father said about you…"

"And that's what I did before I met you, wasn't it?" He snapped.

"Honey, we swore never to bring this up-"

"But your father's assumptions were correct, were they not?" The twins both woke up simultaneously, listening, but not moving. "Love, I don't want him doing anything to Catherin." Catherin's heart skipped a beat. What did he say?

"We can trust Satoshi, dear. It's okay. Have you seen how he is to Ethan? So even if he does get Cath pregnant, he'll be an excellent father." Caitlyn sat up slightly, glancing at Catherin. The car pulled into the driveway, but before anyone could say anything, Catherin flung the car door open and raced upstairs. Mr. Lumbach stared after his daughter.

"She heard everything, didn't she?" Caitlyn brushed her hair out of her face, hugging her father around the waist.

"It is okay, Daddy." She muttered. Anthony ran a hand through his hair, sighing. "Sato and Cath aren't even together." Anthony's shoulders fell.

"Wait…they aren't?" Caitlyn shook her head.

"No. So you need to go tell Catherin you're sorry." Dianne, who was holding a quite happy Ethan, nodded. Ethan gripped her blonde hair, tugging firmly on it, causing her to jump slightly. She pried his hand off of the clump of hair and kissed Anthony on the cheek, his short stubble tickling her lips.

"Go on, darling." Anthony sighed, entering the house and walking to the room the twins shared. He knocked softly on the door, opening it just a crack.

"Cit-Cat? You in here?" Catherin was sprawled across her bed, face shoved in a pillow.

"No. I died." Anthony sighed, sitting on the edge of the bed. He rubbed Catherin's back gently.

"Look…I'm sorry. I didn't know you weren't together…I just…got carried away. Can you forgive me?" Catherin lifted her head slightly.

"Yes. I can." She sat up, hugging her father. "But if you ever say anything like that about Satoshi again…I'm going to have to kill you. I'm a witch, you know." She said, pointing to her wand on her bedside table. Anthony nodded, hugging his girl close to him. "But…Daddy?"

"Yes?"

"If I am pregnant, would you kill Satoshi?"

"Are you saying…"

"No, Daddy."

"Oh…good girl."


	28. Chapter 28

"Kon'nichiwa radies and Jeffrey, wercome to the Ueda home," Satoshi exclaimed in what he deemed to be quite an accurate Japanese accent, bowing grandly as he opened his front door. It had been a couple weeks since summer vacation started, and Satoshi invited his best friend and that friend's two cousins over for a visit at his house. Caitlyn rolled her eyes pleasantly, Jeffrey put on a beamish grin, and Catherin giggled plus returned a little bow herself. Before any of the four companions could speak, Satoshi's younger sister Sakura walked up onto the porch and ducked around the trio standing there.

"You know Sato, not _all _Japanese people say r's for l's, that is such a stereotype," she indicated.

"Well ex_cuse _me, Little Miss Sunshine. And it wouldn't kill you to say 'hello' to our guests," Satoshi mused, fingering his sister's reddish-brown ringlets. He tilted his head slightly as he noticed the envelope atop the pile of mail Sakura had just retrieved. "What's that?" he asked, pointing to it as the girl muttered something about being able to see Jeffrey every day, seeing as he lived down the street.

"It's a letter from that damn aunt of ours," she sighed, closing the door with her foot since everyone had entered.

"I like this girl," Caitlyn snickered, which earned her a light kick in the back of the shin by Catherin.

Satoshi's eyes widened slightly and he grasped Sakura's arm. "Whoa whoa whoa, watch the LANGUAGE, girl!"

Sakura raised an eyebrow at him incredulously. She shook her head slowly in time with her drawled out words. "You bloody hypocrite...I learn it from _you,_ you know."

An almost insane laugh erupted from Satoshi's vocal chords. "Ah, this is a true fact." His face lit up as another person stepped into the living room from a door leading to the stairwell. "Oy, Shiro! 'Morning, mate! Slept in today, hm?" It was obvious that Shiro's usually tidy hair wasn't brushed, and his extremely casual clothes (a plain blue t-shirt and baggy sweat pants) were crinkled quite a lot. He froze right in the middle of scratching his head and blushed madly.

Caitlyn squealed like a kid in a candy shop and skipped over to the young teenage boy. "SHIRO! Hi there little buddy!" she shrieked, hugging him tightly in an awkward position that had one arm wrapped around his back and the other pressing his head into her shoulder. His blush intensified, yet he somehow seemed more… at home.

"Little-? Caitlyn, I'm taller than you now."

Giggling, Caitlyn winked and held him out at arm's length. "Blimey, you _are _aren't you? A whole 2 inches I'd say… But you're still younger, thus making you my _little _buddy."

Shiro managed to slink over to his brother, who was cracking up silently and leaning into Jeffrey for support. "I don't know if I should be glad she's over that disturbing depressed phase, or terrified that she's probably out of her mind…" Satoshi simply shrugged, attempting to reduce his snickers.

"Oh, hey Jeffrey! Hi Catherin! It's good to see you," Shiro added, standing up taller and briefly straightening out his disheveled hair. His eyes lingered on Catherin for a second as she said her greeting in return, and it looked as if he wanted to ask her something, but he quickly shut his mouth and averted his gaze. When Sakura pressed the letter from their aunt into Shiro's palm, he glared at it for a moment before exiting the room with his sister in wake.

Once the four friends were alone, Satoshi plopped down on a sofa and motioned for the others to do the same. "So, there you have it. Try not to let Sakura catch you on fire with her eyes, and give Shiro a break- he's having woman problems."

Catherin furrowed her eyebrows together in concern. "Yeah? How so?"

Satoshi crossed his legs, casually draping one arm around Catherin's shoulders and the other around Jeffrey's. "He's crushing _big _time on someone. I can tell, being the," he used a French accent for the next sentence, "master of love zat I am. However, I am going to try something new and not even ask who the special girl is; I'll wait for him to talk to me about it."

The twins gripped onto each other overdramatically, drawing in deep gasps. "Who are you and what have you done with Satoshi Ueda!"

Satoshi simply tousled their hair and uncrossed his legs. "_Well. _I might as well tell you why I've gathered you all here."

Jeffrey raised one hand nonchalantly. "Hey, I don't need a reason. I'm here about every opportunity I get."

"True that, Jeffy. But this is a special occasion. So check out what little ol' me got a hold of." Out of his jeans pocket, he whipped out a stack of slightly crumpled but still official-looking tickets. All joking seeped out of his friends' faces; their jaws dropped and eyes bulged simultaneously.

"Are those…?" Caitlyn began.

"Tickets to the Quidditch. World. Cup," Satoshi assured her, nodding with every syllable he spoke. "Five of 'em. One for me, one for each of you, and one for Mr. Dopple. Y'know, the dude that's been taking care of it since my family croaked…" He spoke casually despite the fact that he still choked up inside at the reminder of his parents' death.

"Where _are _the Dopples, by the way?" Catherin inquired.

"Mr. Dopple's working but Mrs. Dopple's grocery shopping, she'll be home soon," Satoshi answered quickly. "Anyhoo, the Weasleys are coming separately, I plan on meeting them there… You guys wanna come? It's in a week."

"Uh, DUH!" Caitlyn and Jeffrey insisted immediately (Caitlyn had perked up noticeably at the word "Weasley"). Satoshi smiled expectantly at Catherin, who nodded and sent a big grin his way. _Ah, what a smile she has…_ Satoshi turned his eyes toward the ground, suddenly feeling far too close to the blonde Hufflepuff.

Catherin tilted her head slightly, her high ponytail bobbing with the action, and she pressed her index finger thoughtfully against her chin. "I wonder if we could ask Gaia to come?" she wondered. Caitlyn gave her a look that said "Are you serious?" while Jeffrey planted his face against the palm of his hand. Satoshi, on the other hand, laughed affectionately.

"You see, my dear ditzy blonde, there are a couple problems with that. One: we don't have another ticket. Two…" His expression became more serious. "The biggest Quidditch fan I know is Seamus Finnigan."

Catherin was silent for a few minutes afterwards.

The companions sat chatting for about ten minutes until a knock sounded from the door. Satoshi skipped over to answer it, readying his Japanese accent but instead having a paper bag handed to him. "Take this to the kitchen, please," instructed the gentle voice of Mrs. Dopple. Blinking, Satoshi immediately did what he was told and ducked when the elder woman used her wand to send the remaining groceries flying into the room he was headed to. She smiled tiredly at the teenagers sitting on the couch, the twins looking slightly stunned. "Nice to see you again, Jeffrey. And you girls must be Catherin and Caitlyn?"

"Yup, that's us," Catherin piped up, getting to her feet to be polite. Caitlyn did the same, and Jeffrey figured he might as well stand too. Mrs. Dopple shook both girls' hands in turn.

"Ah, I've heard so much about you… Good things, though, all good things." A slight smirk played on her lips. "I'm going to start dinner, you kids are welcome to stay and eat," she indicated.

"Ooh, what are you making?" Catherin wondered aloud.

"Pizza from scratch," the woman answered. Caitlyn and Jeffrey simultaneously grinned at each other.

"Oh my god. When we were little, whenever the girls' mum came to visit- their mum is my dad's sister- me, Dad, Caitlyn, and Aunt Dianne would made pizza just like that… Dear little Catherin couldn't be bothered and played with her dolls instead," Jeffrey recalled in a both fond and teasing tone.

Mrs. Dopple deepened her smile. "Did you now? Well, if you'd like, you could come and help me out with it," she remarked.

"Cool, that could be fun!" Caitlyn chimed. Jeffrey nodded his agreement, the two cousins feeling quite like kids again.

"Meanwhile I'm going to bond with Catherin," Satoshi declared a bit loudly, leaning his elbow on the shorter girl's shoulder. Mrs. Dopple raised an eyebrow at him skeptically, but didn't argue when he dragged her to the staircase. Sighing under her breath, she motioned for Caitlyn and Jeffrey to join her in the kitchen.

Catherin's heart fluttered in her chest as she followed Satoshi up the stairs. Their relationship was so _unique. _They'd kissed. They'd held hands. They'd been on unofficial dates. Yet they weren't girlfriend and boyfriend. Still, they couldn't possibly say they were "just friends," with all the things they obviously felt for each other… There really was no other way to describe their relationship besides how Caitlyn had put it: reserved for each other.

"Sorry it's a… bit messy," Satoshi apologized as he opened the door to his bedroom. Posters of Quidditch players and Muggle girls hung at odd angles on the wall, plus dirty laundry, empty boxes, and assorted knick-knacks covered the floor.

"Oh, yeah, just a bit," Catherin mocked good-naturedly. Her grin slipped away and she blushed, though, as she stepped over a pair of Satoshi's boxers. Satoshi laughed and threw himself backwards onto his unmade bed, patting the space beside him. Catherin lay down there. "You wanna know what the cutest thing is?" she said.

"Tell me."

"Those pictures above your fireplace..." Catherin was referring to images that displayed all 6 of the Ueda kids when they were babies, then magically flashed out to show more recent pictures of them. The recent pictures hadn't been updated, though, since the death of the 3 little ones and their parents.

A sad smile crept onto Satoshi's previously very bright face. "Oh, yeah… Mum and Dad were really good at making adorable kids, huh? I mean…" He motioned at his own face, resulting in a laugh from Catherin. Her fingers absently brushed across Satoshi's; she made to pull her hand away, but he grabbed hers firmly in place. "Funny, how my dad was totally Japanese yet only Sana and sort of the twins came out looking Asian…"

Now it was Catherin's turn to show a poignant grin. "You really loved them, didn't you?" Satoshi heaved a sigh.

"You know it… I know their ages were pretty far apart, but maybe they could've been buddies with Ethan," Satoshi whispered. Tears briefly swam into Catherin's icy blue eyes. Before she could comment, Satoshi added, "And I beg to differ with what you said before." He rolled over to face the girl beside him. "I think the cutest thing ever is _you._"

"That's so cheesy," Catherin breathed, allowing one tear to escape and the others to dry up. Her eyes widened slightly as she realized how utterly close to Satoshi's face she was: there was but a centimeter between their noses. She desperately wanted to yank her hand out of his grasp since it was embarrassingly beginning to sweat, but Satoshi didn't seem to mind. On the contrary, he laced his fingers more comfortingly with hers, and then…

It happened in a flash before either of them was aware it was occurring. At first, it was an innocent peck on the lips; however, they silently agreed that wasn't enough and dove in for a more noticeable one. Catherin rolled onto her side too, making their task much easier to achieve. Catherin slid her arm under Satoshi's ribs and rested it on his back while he expertly caressed her cheek. The non-couple gazed lovingly at each other before closing their eyes and kissing once more. An unfamiliar fiery desire leapt into Satoshi's chest. He wanted this… He wanted this so badly, and would never have this opportunity any time soon… So he took a dire risk and seized his chance.

Satoshi rolled over again, resulting in a yelp from Catherin. He adjusted her position so that her head was pressed against his pillow, as if she was simply lying down to sleep. Leaning over her with his knees planted on either side of her waist, Satoshi was completely in control. He knew her heart was beating a mile a minute, and he saw the fear sweep across her eyes, but he would never hurt her… His thoughts must have reached Catherin because the inhibition in her features decreased a bit.

Just to be sure, Satoshi murmured, "I won't hurt you, Catherin. Not now, not ever."

The blonde girl managed to nod her head. "I know." Smiling in relief, Satoshi gave her a sweet peck on the nose before continuing with his actions. He pried her fingers off of his back and gently pinned her arms against the bed. Even so, if she showed any sign of wanting to get away, he'd back down immediately. For the time being, at least, she didn't seem eager to escape, so he gave her a passionate kiss in order to help loosen her up.

"Sato… I don't like how you're holding me, it feels like you're preparing to slaughter me or something," Catherin muttered airily. Without a word, Satoshi freed her wrists and instead slipped one hand behind her head and the other under her hip. Catherin quickly rested her hands against Satoshi's back, gripping his shirt as if expecting him to leave her if she didn't hold onto him.

Now it was clear that their lips wouldn't be away from each other's any time soon. Their mouths repeatedly mashed together, pulling partially apart every 5 seconds for a gulp of air before returning to the act. Satoshi daringly slid his hand underneath Catherin's tank top, resulting in a shiver of pleasure when his cooler skin met the area above her ribs. "You are so damn skinny, woman," Satoshi mumbled. Catherin simply smiled into the next kiss. A gentle moan escaped her semi parted lips as Satoshi continued to stroke her ticklish skin with his fingertips.

Come about a minute, Satoshi feared that their repetitive, relatively bland kissing was getting old. So, he tried a new strategy. He pulled his face away, chuckling as Catherin ended up kissing the air and blinking in confusion. Her eyes widened slightly as she felt Satoshi's lips meet that special space between her jaw bone and neck. She flinched when he nipped her, so he decided it best to just deliver many heated kisses to the area he knew she'd find so sensitive. It was obviously effective: her hands were now tangled in his sort-of-long hair, her eyes were shut lightly, and sounds of pleasure occasionally arose in her throat.

Soon enough, Satoshi thought he'd spice it up even more. Since his legs were getting tired and his neck was getting stiff from having to bend over Catherin, he slid down so that he was laying literally on top of her. She didn't seem to mind his weight, though. He blushed as she teasingly unzipped his jeans, but she quickly squeaked: "Ew, like I'd really want _that!" _and wrapped her arms around his shoulders. With a half smile, Satoshi began delivering a trail of moist kisses from her earlobe down her jaw, halting at her chin and moving up to her mouth.

There was one last thing he wanted to do without going too far, if he hadn't already crossed the line. He ran his tongue across the area where Catherin's upper and bottom lip met. Catherin recoiled for a moment, until she realized what he was requesting. Her conscience demanded that she push him away from her, but the offer was so irresistible… Catherin opened her mouth just a bit and allowed Satoshi inside. She did the same to him without any protest in response.

If Catherin's heart wasn't already beating fast enough, it sure was now. Here she was, French kissing Satoshi Ueda, her hands up his shirt with his fingers removing the tie in her ponytail to release her bleach blonde hair, his body pressed against hers, the heat of both the moment and the room making them sweat…. Were Satoshi's jeans getting tighter-?

If only the non-couple had been less absorbed in what they were doing and more alert to being called down for dinner; if only Satoshi hadn't let his bedroom door unlocked… "Sato, Catherin, dinner is- MERLIN'S PANTS WHAT ARE YOU DOING!" Shiro stood in the doorway, mouth hanging open and blue eyes bulging nearly out of their sockets. Satoshi stumbled off the bed and onto his feet in a flash, his eyes almost as wide as his brother's. Catherin sat up in a daze, hastily wiping Satoshi's saliva off of the places where he'd kissed her the most and making to pull all of her hair back into a ponytail. The three stared at each other in a tense silence until Shiro released an uneven sigh. "And I thought _I _had girl troubles…" he muttered.

Satoshi and Catherin didn't talk throughout the entire dinner, unless it was to compliment the food, ask for something to be passed, or comment on someone else's remark. Guilt the size of an elephant weighed down on Satoshi. Catherin wasn't even his girlfriend, and he'd just nearly made love to her… Not to mention he was only 16, her 15, if they had taken things just a bit farther what would have happened? He felt so dirty, so violating… Dismissing himself from the table, he delivered his plate to the kitchen sink and ran his hands through his bangs. Unaware that Catherin had silently followed him, he thought it safe to whisper aloud all his jumbled thoughts.

"Why do I always have to bloody mess with the poor girl's head? We insist that we won't date until we're older, but I just keep making moves at her… I'm taking advantage of this whole 'on-hold relationship' thing, showing I'm a single man and snogging whoever the hell I want, yet I've got Cath in a chokehold! I'm flaunting around with all these other girls while I feel like I'm just not letting Catherin choose anyone else, even for a little bit…" He jumped with a gasp when Catherin gently placed her hand on his shoulder. "Catherin! I…! I-I'm sorry, first off…"

Shaking her head, Catherin pressed a finger to Satoshi's lips. "Shush. Sato, you're _impossible _to be mad at…" She paused. "Okay, don't quote me on that one. …But, it's not your fault that everything you do makes me wanna be your girlfriend _now… _I _know _that waiting is for the best. Like we've said, we'll probably end up tired of each other if we get together when we're just kids… And what we just did? Well…" Catherin blushed, a combination of shame, sheepishness, and slight joy appearing in her features. "Now I just know that I've got even more to look forward to."


	29. Chapter 29

Caitlyn spun around in a circle, giggling. "This tent is _amazing,_ Satoshi." Satoshi was sitting in on of the armchairs, smirking as Catherin propped herself on his lap. He played with her hair, watching Caitlyn as she gazed around the tent. Jeffrey had situated himself on the bed, hands behind his head.

"You know, Lyn…The Weasleys are a few tents over." He said slyly. Caitlyn slowly looked at the tent entrance, longing to open it and find her boyfriend. Satoshi waved his hand at the door as if saying, "Go."

"I'll watch those two lovers." Jeffrey said as Caitlyn's eyes lit up. She rushed out the tent entrance, frantically looking around for Fred. When she spotted the redheaded boy, she rushed over, flinging herself into his arms.

"Caitlyn!" He laughed, swinging her around. "How come you didn't tell me you were going to be here?

"I wanted it to be a surprise, silly!" She laughed, kissing his cheek. "Now where's your father? And Ron? And George? And Ginny? I heard that Harry and Hermione were here, too…"

"Yes, they're inside." Fred grinned. "You wish to see them?" Caitlyn nodded, wrapping an arm around Fred's waste. Fred lead her in the tent, extending his arm in front of him. "Oy, dad. Look who's here!" Arthur jumped to his feet immediately, hugging Caitlyn. He held her out at arm's length, sighing happily.

"My, my. Caitlyn Lumbach. I haven't seen you in forever."

"I'm surprised they've stayed together this long," Ron said with a laugh. As soon as he said that, however, Caitlyn had captured the redhead boy in a headlock, grinning.

"You're just jealous because Hermione won't go out with you." She said with a wink. Ron's ears turned red, and with that he squirmed from her grasp. She was being held by Fred again. He perched his head on her shoulder, grinning widely.

"So who're you here with?" He said, sitting on a chair and pulling her onto his lap. She leaned her head on his chest, smiling.

"My sister, Satoshi, and Jeffrey…Those people." Fred nodded simply.

"You could spend the night in here, Fred would love that." George chuckled with a wink. Hermione, who was in the corner reading, just rolled her eyes. Fred stroked Caitlyn's bleach blonde hair affectionately, kissing her forehead.

"Perhaps. I mean, we still haven't had the chance to…" He stopped mid-sentence, chuckling at the sight of his girlfriend already asleep on his lap. "She's so cute." George wolf-whistled, causing Fred to slightly go red at the cheeks. "Oh, shut it…" He propped his chin on her head, smiling warmly.

"I guess she can sleep here, then…" Arthur said from the other side of the tent, chuckling quietly to himself.

In the tent of Satoshi, Catherin, and Jeffrey, Catherin had too fallen asleep on one of beds. Satoshi slowly walked to her, brushing her hair out of her face. _She's cute when she's sleeping…_Satoshi thought. He grinned to himself, placing Doodles (the rainbow teddy bear, if you remember) beside the sleeping girl. He kissed her cheek softly, climbing onto the bed next to her.

"Don't even think about it," Jeffrey whisper-shouted, and with that he crawled between the two. "You will not even _think _about doing that with my cousin." He said. Satoshi grinned mischievously.

"Who said I'd do that?" Jeffrey rolled over to face Satoshi.

"I can tell by your face." He said, poking Satoshi in the cheek.

"Oh. Cool." Satoshi said, still smiling. Eventually they both fell asleep, but Jeffrey had trouble sleeping, as he would wake up in the night with either Catherin or Satoshi's arms or legs flung on top of him in some way or fashion.

"That's a load of money, you two!" Caitlyn said, her eyes wide as her boyfriend and his brother came skipping down the stairs to her with a bag of coins in their hand. Fred shook the bag in her face, smirking.

"We won the bet; old Bagman had to pay up sooner or later." George claimed happily.

"Besides; we need this money for our business, Lyn." Fred whispered in her ear. Caitlyn grinned broadly, remembering when Fred had first showed Caitlyn their stash of candies and products they had invented. They slowly clambered down the velvet staircase, excited to get back to the tent to celebrate the winning of their team.

"That was some game," Satoshi said, catching up to her and propping an arm on her shoulder. Catherin soon appeared and did the same, a soft smile on her face.

"Quite a twist at the end." She agreed.

"Oy, Caitlyn. What ever happened to that little Snitch you used to keep in that bag on your waist?" Jeffrey questioned. Caitlyn felt a small blush rising, looking down.

"Oh, I leave it in my trunk now…" Fred and George both placed a hand to their hearts, closing their eyes.

"They grow up so fast," They said in unison. Caitlyn shoved them both lightly, giggling. They walked along the lantern-lit path back to the campsites, where they all celebrated as the leprechauns continued to shoot over their heads, waving their own lanterns and dancing around. It was only when Ginny had fallen asleep on the table Mr. Weasley had ushered the Lumbachs, Satoshi and Jeffrey to their own tent to get some sleep.

They, however, didn't sleep. They stayed up longer, cheering and skipping around the tent, verbally replaying the event.

A scream echoed through the campsite, causing all noise to die down. It had gotten eerily silent. Satoshi slowly stood, staring at the tent entrance. Catherin gazed at him, also jumping to her feet. More screams had shot through the air, causing Caitlyn to jump and hug onto Jeffrey's arm. A loud crash rang, and Satoshi flung open the tent entrance, Catherin gripping his hand. She looked worriedly at him; his expression was a mix between horror and bravery.

People were racing towards the forest, fleeing from something moving across the field. Strange flashes of light and sounds like gunfire could be heard and seen in the distance. A burst of green light lit up the scene, frightening Catherin, who was now clinging to Satoshi. There were wizards, a group of them, with their wands raised upwards to the sky. Their faces were masked, heads hooded.

Floating in midair, four figures were struggling and wiggling to be free of their sky prison. Two figures were small, the other two being larger in build. Satoshi figured that the wizards on the ground were controlling these people. More wizards had joined by this point, wands raised.

Satoshi pulled on Catherin's wrist, uprising a squeal from the smaller girl. "Come on, we all need to get to the woods!" He shouted over the noise. He whipped his wand out (as the lanterns had all been extinguished) and lit the path ahead.

"Satoshi, you're undera-"

"I don't give a damn, Caitlyn." He snapped, pulling Catherin behind him. Caitlyn ran after them, Jeffrey on her heels. They ran into the woods, safe for now. A sound like a bomb came from where the hooded wizards were, torturing the family of four. They clustered behind a tree, sinking to the ground.

"Caitlyn!" Caitlyn whipped her head around, finding Fred, George, and Ginny. She ran quickly to Fred, jumping into his arms and trying hard not to cry.

"What the bloody hell is going on?" She squeaked. Fred's breathing was quick, as if he'd been running.

"I don't even know! We lost Harry, Ron, and Hermione,"

"Percy, Charlie, Bill and Dad went to go see what was going on." George finished for him. They all looked around the dark forest, only slight amount of light from Satoshi's wand. There was no sound, only silence.

The silence was broken by a shout, but one that sounded much like a spell.

"_MORSMORDRE!" _

Something that you could call a green light shot up into the sky. A large skull, which was made of what you could call emerald stars, hung in the sky, a serpent slithering out of its mouth like a tongue. Catherin winced in disgust, shuddering slightly in the process. It rose higher and higher in the sky, causing screams to shout out through the woods. Caitlyn stared up in the sky, eyes wide.

"What is that?" Satoshi yelled.

"It's You-Know-Who's sign. The Dark Mark, we need to go, now!" Caitlyn shrieked, tugging on Ginny's jacket.

"I think we all need to go back to the tents," Jeffrey said as silence came upon them like a blanket. Caitlyn swallowed a lump in her throat, gripping Fred's hand tightly. She nodded tiredly; she still hadn't gotten any sleep at all. Catherin lit her own wand, stepping over the roots and fallen leaves of the forest, weaving through the brambles.

"Come on…We need to go back." She attempted to say, but it came out no stronger than a whisper. Satoshi nodded, slowly following her. They made their way back to the tent, Caitlyn giving Fred a sweet good-night kiss, and they all disappeared into their own tents. Satoshi closed the entrance, letting the light on the tip of his wand go dark.

"We leave tomorrow morning." He said simply, flicking off all the lamps and crawling onto the bed. The twins glanced at each other, both climbing onto their bunks without bothering to change. Jeffrey did the same, but he couldn't help but think of how Catherin and Satoshi were acting around each other…


	30. Chapter 30

"Stop right there, you saw _what?" _On a rather dull day of her summer, Gaia had bolted over to her phone the moment it chimed to life and was answering before the second ring shrilled. A grin immediately seeped onto her face when the response on the other end was "Hey, it's Cath!" What better way to brighten away boredom than the ever-colorful Catherin Lumbach?

Catherin asked her friend how her summer was going, expressed sympathy when she said pretty boringly, and then started rambling on about some cute baby stuff Ethan did and the Quidditch World Cup. Gaia simply nodded and supplied the occasional, "Uh huh" or "oh really?" for the second part. Since she had never been fond of the sport (she only ever pretended to because of Seamus's enthusiasm for it, but obviously there was no need for that anymore), she was barely listening; that is, until Catherin started talking about the Dark Mark appearing in the sky.

"It was the scariest thing…" Now Catherin's tone was slower, and lacked a lot of its previous enthusiasm.

Biting her lip in concern, Gaia immediately started developing a way to change the subject. She allowed a slight smirk when an idea came to her. "Well let's not talk about _that… _Tell me about sleeping in the same tent as Satoshi."

A quiet giggle sounded on the other line. "So I take it you're officially over him?"

"Satoshi, Seamus… They're both history. I'm about ready to throw up my hands and be done with guys for a long while." Resting the phone between her cheek and the spot where her shoulder connects to her neck, Gaia clapped her hands to strengthen her point.

"You go girl! Now, don't go turning lesbian on me…"

"Too late, babe." Gaia made a kissing sound into the phone; both girls burst into laughter.

"So, anyway…" Catherin continued after they calmed down, coughing into her fist to help reduce her snickers. "Mum and Dad thought it'd be fun to go to the zoo tomorrow. Satoshi's gonna meet us there, with his siblings and Jeffrey … Shiro and Sakura are gonna go do their own thing, same with my parents and Ethan… You want to come? We'll pick you up 'n stuff."

A flame of relief and eagerness lit inside of Gaia's chest. "Do you even need to ask? Hold on…" She concealed the receiver in her palm and stretched her neck to look over her shoulder toward the kitchen. "Mum? Can I go to the zoo with the twins tomorrow? Mr. and Mrs. Lumbach will pick me up."

"Sure, there's no reason why not. It's about time you get out of this house," Mrs. Robertson called in return. Grinning, Gaia brought the end of the phone back up to her mouth.

"I'll be seeing you tomorrow!"

It was obvious from the shifting of her voice that Catherin was jumping up and down. "Awesome! Can't wait!" she squealed. And with a quick good-bye, both girls hung up.

"Remember, meet us _right here _at 1:30 exactly, alright?" Mrs. Lumbach reminded the group of teenagers, her hands gripping a stroller in which Ethan was gazing around casually. Satoshi gave a salute, having already dismissed his brother and sister. He kneeled down in front of Ethan's stroller, wiggling his index finger in his round little face.

"Aw! He looks Asian!" he laughed, noticing how the baby was squinting in the sunlight above.

Laughing as well, Catherin bent over next to him and rested her hands on her knees. "No wonder he likes you so much, he's your kin!"

A smirk made its way immediately onto Satoshi's face. "Well of course he is. He's _our _baby," he crooned.

"DNA tests will prove otherwise, I'm sure," Mr. Lumbach reasoned under his breath, stepping between the sort-of-couple and heaving his son into his arms. Everyone at least chuckled, and proceeded on their way.

After Satoshi took an overdramatic and unnecessary head count, he marched off to the enlarged map in the middle of the park. "Hey, you know what we should see first? Wolves," he decided.

"Why? Because you act like you were raised by them?" Catherin teased. Satoshi ruffled her hair roughly, resulting in a good portion of her ponytail slipping out of its holder. He stuck out his tongue and jokingly brought it so close to her cheek that if he moved the slightest bit forward, he'd lick her.

Shaking her head fondly, Gaia raised her hand a bit. "I think it's a good idea. I mean, the canine habitat is new and still in progress, it won't take long to look through it." She snapped her fingers, demonstrating how quick it would take.

"Can we go to the birds after that?" Caitlyn asked, her index finger resting thoughtfully on her chin. "According to this, they should be right across from the dogs." Nobody protested, so with Satoshi leading the way, the group of 5 walked down the stone path that led to the zoo's latest exhibit.

When they arrived there shortly later, though, they were met with slight disappointment. One of the two Timber Wolves was fast asleep in the shade of its enclosure, making its tail the only visible feature; the other wolf was loping around just out of the groups' sight range. Apparently there had been a dingo in the currently empty cage neighboring the wolves, but according to a notice clipped to said cage, the animal broke its paw and was with the veterinarian. Not to mention the Fennec Foxes hadn't even arrived yet.

Fortunately, there was one habitat in which a coyote stalked back and forth across the edge of the cage, closest to the path on which people walked. Grinning, Satoshi stepped as close to the animal as possible (which wasn't very close, with the wooden railing meant to keep people back). "I lied, wolves aren't cool: _coyotes _are cool." As if aware that it was the topic of discussion, the coyote halted its pacing and casually glanced over at Satoshi.

"Aw, they're like, communicating," Gaia mused with a laugh as Satoshi and the creature made eye contact.

Briefly smirking over his shoulder, Satoshi leaned even farther over the railing and let out a shameless "Owooo!" sort of sound. To everyone's surprise, the coyote actually responded with a rusty, feeble howl of its own. "_Now _they're communicating," Caitlyn said joyously. Feeling immensely successful, Satoshi let out a barking sound that more closely resembled an irritated chihuahua's yap. Blushing slightly in embarrassment from his friend's rowdiness, Jeffrey smiled apologetically at a passing family that was giving the group odd stares.

As promised, Satoshi ushered everyone across the zoo's center to the avian exhibits once he was done "having a conversation" with the coyote ("He had somewhere to be," Satoshi reasoned when the animal walked off). On the outskirts of a colorful building called the Bird House was a rough duplicate of a beach, with sand and plastic rocks for effect plus a pool of clear blue water. Squealing, Catherin bolted over immediately.

"PENGUINS! Oh Merlin, they're _adorable! _I love penguins…" she breathed, tightly gripping the metal bar that prevented her from diving in with the black-and-white flightless birds. She stared at the creatures slipping in and out of the water so intently that she probably wouldn't even blink if someone abruptly slapped her across the face.

Satoshi stood by her side with an eyebrow raised skeptically. "I thought penguins had to be where it's cold?"

"These penguins are from Madagascar," Gaia indicated matter-of-factly, walking up and resting her elbow on the railing. She tried her best to hide the fact that the substance, burning hot thanks to the sun, caused her bare skin much pain. Jeffrey shot her a worried look, though, when he noticed her flinch and bite her lip.

"And how do you know this?" Satoshi questioned.

"They're called books, Satoshi," Caitlyn and Gaia told him in unison.

Pouting slightly, Satoshi waved his hand dismissively. "I don't need no _bocks _or whatever you smarticle peoples call 'em."

"Of course not, you're obviously a ton smarter than all of us already," Jeffrey agreed sarcastically. The first person to laugh was Gaia; for some reason, it made a smile immediately seep onto Jeffrey's face.

It took a couple minutes to peel Catherin away from the penguins, but despite much protest from the blonde, everyone finally managed to get inside the Bird House. They immediately paused and looked around, mouths slightly agape, the moment they walked in. Birds of every shape, size, and color were situated amongst greenery, both fake and real. Settings varied from tropical rain forests to a few simply trees. There was even a scarlet macaw flying free around the building, retreating to a wooden play set in the center.

One thing in particular, though, caught Caitlyn's eye. "GAH, kiwis! Those things are the cutest," she gasped, dashing over to the only exhibit that lacked trees. Her eyes darted around through the vegetation in search of a little brown flightless bird.

"Kiwis? Aren't they a _fruit?" _spoke a rather confused Satoshi.

"You really don't read bocks, do you?" Everyone except for Satoshi laughed at Gaia's remark. Caitlyn, though, soon replaced her mirth with a disappointed expression.

"I don't see it anywhere… It must be sleeping," she sighed, moving on to check out some sort of raven. When everybody had their backs turned, Satoshi caught notice of a fluffy, long-beaked bird step into view in the kiwi's glass cage… He decided with a smirk not to tell anyone about it.

Bouncing on her heels, Gaia pointed eagerly toward the back of the building. "They have this thing in there, with all these little parakeet or lovebird type things, and you get a tiny cup of stuff that you hold out to them and they land on the brim and drink out of it… It's _so _cute, we should go do it!" she explained. The others exchanged glances, shrugging and following after her as she practically skipped to the door in the back.

When the group entered what greatly resembled an exotic greenhouse, they saw that there were at least 10 other people in there. A woman wearing some sort of safari getup smiled at them, maneuvering her way through the guests. "Hello, kids! Here to feed the birds?" Gaia answered for all of them with an "Uh huh." The woman nodded and shuffled over to a little station. She grabbed a small stack of plastic cups, filling each one with a yellowish liquid. Her expression suddenly darkened. "Sorry guys, but there are only 4 cups left… One of you will have to share."

"I will," Jeffrey chimed immediately, before Catherin and Satoshi could volunteer. He started to draw back on his offer- after all, he'd only spoken out of good manners- but the woman was already setting a cup in his hand and ushering him over to Gaia. She grinned at him; he meekly tried to return the smile.

"So everyone spread out, there's plenty of room… Just carefully hold your cup high, a bird should find you soon enough," the woman in charge instructed. Everyone did as they were told.

Both of the Lumbach twins found success within 30 seconds, squealing slightly when a colorful little bird landed on their cups and began to drink. To his frustration yet amusement, every bird seemed to be avoiding Satoshi. Meanwhile, Jeffrey and Gaia were awkwardly trying to arrange something that worked for them. Oh, how much easier it would have been if they were more than just acquaintances… They considered alternating who held the cup, but decided that wouldn't work out if they intended to have birds stay. In the end, they made do with each of them holding the cup firmly between their index finger and thumb and holding it as such. Although they were able to stand more than arms' length apart, the two automatically found that it was inevitable for their fingers to touch.

Once everyone's cups were drained (or dumped out, in Satoshi's case), the group headed out toward the cages of monkeys and apes. They didn't linger there long: Gaia decided she'd made friends with a gibbon, only to have it try and pull her hand through the cage; an assortment of little snacks were available for feeding the primates, and Satoshi decided it would be fun to grab a handful and chuck individual pieces at them. He started cracking up when he hit one capuchin so hard with a peanut that it lost its balance… But a young boy saw it as well and burst into tears. After a lecture from the kid's mother (and Gaia, being the nature lover that she is), Satoshi led everyone over to the house of reptiles.

The temperature and lighting both varied within every section of the building. In some places, it was humid and dim; in others, warm and red. Gaia and Satoshi were getting a kick out of everything, though the twins and Jeffrey were itching to leave after being there for not even a minute. "Hey there young lady, how would _you _like to hold a snake?" asked a man wearing the same ensemble as the woman from the Bird House. The twins looked utterly devastated when Gaia eagerly accepted.

"Gaia… Are you sure about this?" Jeffrey asked nervously, his eyes glued to the thin serpent the man was draping over Gaia's outstretched arms.

"Oh man up! He's just a little corn snake," Gaia retorted, crooning to the creature as it slithered up her arms. She started murmuring to it affectionately as if it was a kitten.

"We're gonna go… over there…" Jeffrey muttered, backing toward the much-less-intimidating geckos with the other three. Pouting, Gaia carefully handed the snake back to its handler and trotted over to join her companions.

Catherin was already a nervous wreck around anything with scales, but Gaia's vivid explanation on how Komodo dragons tear apart their prey was the straw that broke the camel's back. Clamping her hands over her face, Catherin shook her head rapidly and bolted out the front doors with a shriek. For a moment, Gaia felt guilty… Then she smirked and led everyone else outside.

The rest of their visit, the five teens checked out giraffes (which licked their hands), elephants, camels, big cats like lions and tigers, tapirs, and a miniature aquarium of tropical fish. They ran into Shiro and Sakura once, and Satoshi made a big point of letting everyone within a mile know that he recognized the two of them. Naturally, the two siblings acted as if they'd never seen their big brother in their lives.

With half an hour left until they had to meet up with the adults, the group decided to head off to the food court. All of them got drinks, plus Satoshi got a cheese steak, Jeffrey got a burger, the twins got hot dogs, and Gaia got cheese fries. "Oh, thanks, Gaia! But I think we all got ketchup already," Catherin exclaimed as her blonde friend grabbed a package of the red condiment. Gaia chuckled as she plopped into a chair.

"I didn't get it for you guys, Cath. It's for my fries."

Smile still in place, Catherin furrowed her eyebrows together in disbelief and sat across from Gaia, beside Satoshi. "You put ketchup on _cheese fries_?"

"Correct. Want to file a complaint against me?" Gaia ripped open a package of ketchup and squeezed the contents over her fries.

"Hey, can I try one of those?" Jeffrey questioned after swallowing his first bite of burger. Gaia grinned against her straw as she took a sip of her water.

"Go for it!" She took a fry that was covered in the perfect ketchup-to-cheese ratio and dropped it into Jeffrey's fingers. He nodded and ate the entire thing whole; a mildly confused expression appeared on his face.

"It's… Well, it wasn't _too _bad. I'll let you have it all."

Gaia laughed. "I intended to eat it all anyway."

With a mouthful of cheese steak, Satoshi leaned toward Catherin as she absently drank her soda. "I bet he digs a woman that's able to eat a whole thing of ketchuppy cheese fries, huh?" he whispered jokingly, followed by a gulp. Catherin snickered and slid her lips off of her straw.

"You need to stop pairing Jeffrey with every female you know," she insisted quietly.

Satoshi waggled a finger at her. "Hey, I haven't paired him with you _or _your sister. And maybe he just needs to start getting a girlfriend." Catherin shook her head fondly and bit off the tip of her hot dog.

Throughout the duration of their meals, the teens mostly just ate and drank but chatted occasionally. Strangely enough, the more that Gaia talked, the less Jeffrey did. She started a majority of their conversations, and took place in all of them. Jeffrey, on the other hand, only spoke when necessary and was the only person who didn't interrupt Gaia at least once. That is, until everyone was almost done with their food.

It happened totally out of the blue. Nobody- literally nobody- was expecting it. Gaia had barely chewed her final ketchup-and-cheese-coated fry, chuckling about a previous comment while she did so, when Jeffrey set down his soda, hazel eyes widened nervously, and spluttered: 'Do you wanna go out with me?' It was a good thing Caitlyn was right there to smack her back, because otherwise, Gaia probably would have choked.


	31. Chapter 31

"You two totally have to get married! If you do that, then we can be like…sisters! Well, not really, since he's my cousin. In order to be my sister you'd have to marry Ethan…but, like, ew. You'd be a pedophile. And he's MY baby. So stay away. How cute would it be if you two had a little baby?!" Catherin, the whole ride to Hogwarts, had been ranting nonstop. Gaia visibly cringed at "had a baby", but Catherin had soon corrected herself and instead said, "Well, adopt a baby. But still!"

Caitlyn had positioned herself so that she was leaning against Fred's shoulder with her feet up on the seat, cuddling up to her boyfriend. Occasionally Fred would play with the end of her thick braid, and in turn she would kiss his cheek. "I think we should have a baby, Fred." Caitlyn said with her sweetest yet most devious smile. That had shut Catherin up.

"What the bloody hell are you talking about?!" The Weasley had smirked, petting Caitlyn's head.

"We want to have a baby," He said happily. George briefly coughed, cracking a smile.

"When we get married." Caitlyn finished, chuckling at how quickly Catherin and Gaia's horror-filled expressions changed. The Weasley twins laughed simultaneously, giving each other a low high-five. Catherin blinked, then turned to Gaia and continued her rant. Caitlyn watched with an amused expression as Gaia would cringe, scowl, choke on air, or even just blush at the slightest thing.

After Jeffrey had asked her out at the zoo, Gaia had almost choked. Caitlyn pounded forcefully on her back, her own expression filled with shock. The table had fallen silent, Jeffrey staring at Gaia, the obvious fact that he was nervous dancing about in his eyes. Gaia blinked a couple of times, finally looking up at him. She opened her mouth, then closed it, but then said, "Of course." Jeffrey's shoulders fell with relief, a grin creeping along the corners of his mouth. Caitlyn smirked. I knew it…

"A romance within our group has budded! Sound the wedding bells!" Satoshi had exclaimed, wrapping his arm around Jeffrey's shoulders. Jeffrey blushed deeply, but Catherin only looked at him in confusion.

"But what about Caitlyn and Fred? Or you and me?" Caitlyn just stared at her twin, shaking her head.

"Poor George…" Gaia muttered. Now everyone in their group was in a relationship with one another except for George. Caitlyn felt a little guilty, but shook it off. She took a drink, smiling against the straw.

"Just wait until I tell everyone in the school about your relationship…" Both Gaia and Jeffrey's eyes widened.

"If you do that…" Catherin said, narrowing her eyes at Caitlyn. She waved her hand, grinning. "I won't." She simply responded.

Back on the train, Caitlyn had fancied herself to laying her head on Fred's lap, still listening to Catherin rant. "So should your wedding be outdoors or indoors? Outdoors, yes. No…Jeffrey's allergic to pollen! That would not be good at all. So I was thinking that your dress can be open in the back with a ribbon trailing down…"

"So how come you've never planned out my wedding?" Fred piped up. Catherin blinked at him, a smirk forming on her lips.

"Okay. You two will get married in Liechtenstein-"

"Where?!"

"You two will get married in Italy, better?" Catherin continued planning weddings until the moment they stepped into the Great Hall for the Sorting of the new students at Hogwarts.

The crazy talk about the weddings had continued throughout the course of the night; until, of course, Professor Dumbledore proposed a very special event to be held at Hogwarts that year.

The Triwizard Tournament.

Whispers filled the Hall as the old wizard explained the tournament; basically three chosen students competed to the death in three events. The Weasley twins looked at each other, grinning. "We so have to do that." They said in unison. They glanced at Satoshi, who in turn shook his head.

"I have to support my siblings," The twins frowned, "but I'll help you." They cheered, skipping off to the dorms. Catherin shuffled nervously up to Satoshi, Gaia following close behind.

"Sato…" She muttered. Satoshi looked down at her, newfound worry threading through his veins. "Don't try to enter this tournament. People die." The oldest Ueda boy couldn't help but smile at the Hufflepuff's worry for him. He bent down, kissing her cheek.

"I won't. I promise." Catherin, nodded, disappearing with the crowd as she went off to her dorm.

* * *

**~Author's Note~**

****Sorry for the horribly long wait! KiwiFruit07 and I have both been on a Harry Potter low, and have been unable to bring ourselves to write anything besides Hetalia... Plus I uploaded this chapter to our joint account, but totally forgot to post it here as well!

Since I am experiencing this longtime Harry Potter writer's block, expect another long wait for chapter 32. T~T


	32. Chapter 32

Chapter Thirty-Two

Of course, there was always word of _something _circulating around Hogwarts; after all, it was a school filled with teenagers. _Magical _teenagers at that. At the time, however, there were a few topics which a vast majority of the buzz concerned.

First off was the topic of Beauxbatons and Durmstrang. As mentioned, three students would be chosen to compete in the Triwizard Tournament. One would be from Scotland's Hogwarts; the other two would be from France's Beauxbatons and Bulgaria's Durmstrang. The schools' headmasters (head_mistress _in Beauxbatons' case) would come to Hogwarts along with their students, and stay there until the tournament's end. Their arrival was coming up soon; until then, the Hogwarts students were able to distract their curiosity by the subject of their peculiar new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, Mad-Eye Moody.

When they _did _come, they made equally stunning entrances, leaving the entire school awestruck and almost insecure about their own academy. Almost.

The Triwizard Tournament itself was naturally talked about quite often. Who would be chosen? How and when would they be chosen? Why did you have to be 17 to enter? Although the Weasley twins were not the only ones who found that rule to be absolute rubbish, no other under aged student planned on cheating their way into entering. Those who were bold enough would approach Satoshi with the question, "Why aren't _you _entering?" After all, it was common knowledge that Satoshi and the twins were always ALL the masterminds behind their plans.

Each time, Satoshi would smile and say "I got a little brother and sister. I can't risk anything."

Nobody- not even the Slytherins, who didn't particularly care anyway- had the nerve to say it to his face, but the whispered word around school was that Satoshi Ueda was turning soft. Which, knowing his reputation, was quite concerning. With his strong, slightly ignorant and oblivious personality, though, Satoshi wasn't affected by these rumors. Especially since he was preoccupied playing Cupid for Shiro.

Satoshi was flattered yet barely humbled when his younger brother approached him, at first casually discussing the Triwizard Tournament then abruptly asking how he asks girls out so easily. Satoshi assumed Shiro was still crushing on a younger Ravenclaw known commonly as Loony Lovegood, but he found out that he was actually seeking to ask out _Konata. _So Satoshi channeled his inner Cassanova and provided his brother with the best dating advice he had to offer.

It ended up working quite well, seeing as Konata and Shiro could often be seen walking around hand-in-hand.

When he wasn't praising himself for getting his brother a girlfriend, Satoshi was helping the twins develop a plan to get past the Age Line that prevented them from submitting their names in the goblet that would decide the tournament's participant. This proved to be fruitless, however, since Harry Potter was selected. He didn't even submit his name, not to mention Cedric Diggory ("I think my brother's girlfriend has a thing for him," Satoshi had said to the twins when his name was drawn) was picked as well. Of course _that _caused a lot of talk that wouldn't soon be quieted.

After the first task, which involved fighting dragons (the Weasley twins couldn't help but mutter about how that could have been them, but Caitlyn and Jeffrey were quick to remind them how dangerous it was), a new subject spiraled around the student body: word of the Yule Ball.

As the name suggests, it was to be held during Christmastime. This gave the students a few weeks to find dates. For some people, this wasn't nearly enough time; for others, it was amusingly lengthy.

"So who are _you _asking, Georgie?" Fred asked, his arm around Caitlyn's shoulders during lunchtime. The blonde quirked an eyebrow.

"I'm beginning to wonder who _you're _asking," she teased, poking her boyfriend in the ribs. Fred grinned at her.

"By the way, Lyn, how would you like to go with me to the Ball?"

"Nah, I'm good." The couple burst into laughter, snuggling up even closer than before. George didn't even bother to prevent himself from rolling his eyes.

Fred reduced his mirth to muffled snickers until he was only beaming. "But seriously, mate. What lucky girl gets to go with you?"

"I'm not sure yet, come to think of it." George pursed his lips, scanning his eyes up and down the Gryffindor table at which he sat. Nodding slightly to himself, he leaned sideways over a few peoples' laps and tapped the Gryffindor Quidditch team's Chaser, Angelina Johnson, on the shoulder. She turned to him with only mild interest. "You," George pointed at the darker skinned girl, "me," he pointed to himself, "the Ball," he made ridiculous arm motions that made it look like he was slow dancing with himself. Angelina glanced around as if waiting for someone to tell her this wasn't a joke, smiled ever-so-slightly, and nodded.

George winked and repositioned himself in his seat. "So did you hear I'm taking Angelina to the dance?" More laughter rung out amongst their group.

"So Sato. When are you gonna ask out Cath?" Caitlyn questioned, absently twirling Fred's wand around in her hand. Catherin currently remained at the Hufflepuff table along with Gaia.

A smile appeared on Satoshi's face, though there was the teensy-tiniest bit of sullenness in his eyes. "Never," he responded. Caitlyn would have laughed, but then she realized he was being serious.

"Wait, _huh?_ But you two are so in _love!" _she gasped, letting Fred's wand clatter to the table and gaping at the Ueda boy. The Weasley twins also stared at him wide-eyed.

"Don't you remember the whole on-hold-relationship thing? We're already taking too many risks, with all the flirting and cheek-kissing we do. If I ask her to the Ball, there's no way we're not gonna start dating. If we start dating when we're just dumb ol' kids, we'll mess up big time somewhere along the way, get sick of each other, separate, then our hopes of a future together will go POOF! We _gotta _wait until we're older to start a real romance," Satoshi explained in his usual tone, making it hard to take him seriously. "And I know what I'm talking about, so shut it," he added as Caitlyn opened her mouth to protest.

"Alright, alright…" she grumbled. _I just hope Catherin understands that._

Meanwhile, the Hufflepuff in question was animatedly chatting away with Gaia when the topic of the Ball inevitably came up. "So are you going with Jeffrey?"

Gaia paused amidst bringing her glass of pumpkin juice to her lips. "I don't know, he didn't ask me yet. And I don't fancy asking him myself." Catherin's eyebrows furrowed together, a frown appearing on her face.

"Gaia, do you still have feelings for Seamus?"

The very mention of the boy that had so suddenly broken up with her made Gaia cough and pause for a moment. "…No. I'm perfectly happy with Jeffrey," she muttered as much to herself as to Catherin.

"Prove it."

"How."

"Go ask my cousin to the Ball," Catherin persisted, her eyes beginning to sparkle. Gaia let out an irritated sigh, took a long sip of her juice, and stood up.

"Fine. But if I get rejected, I'll see to it that you wake up at the bottom of the Black Lake," she snapped. Catherin simply giggled and saluted at her. Gaia shook her head, sighing under her breath, and proceeded down the aisle. She ventured toward the Gryffindor common room, where she knew from experience that Jeffrey would be lingering at this time.

Sure enough, there he was, making his way up to his dormitory. Gaia had every intent of calling out to then approaching him, when an all-too-familiar Irish accent sounded down the corridor and made her stop dead. Just the slightest glimpse of her ex's sand-colored hair would tug at her heartstrings; she needed to get to Jeffrey before-

"So that's a yes?" Seamus was saying, walking into Gaia's line of view. He, however, could not see her, for he was looking at a curly-haired girl by the name of Lavender Brown.

"Of _course _it is, silly! I'll see you there!" she squealed, taking both of Seamus's hands and giving them an affectionate squeeze. Gaia felt her stomach drop.

Seamus was taking _Lavender Brown _to the Ball? The very thought made Gaia nauseas. Unwilling to witness even a second more of this unexpected scene, she promptly turned on her heel and trotted up to Jeffrey. "Jeffy, hey! So uh… Are we, going to the Yule Ball together, or….?"

Jeffrey's smile in itself was evidence that Gaia'd taken another step toward getting over Seamus Finnigan.

* * *

_~Author's Note~_

_After doing a Harry Potter role play, rereading some chapters of __Tale of the Bronze Trio__, watching Harry Potter AMVs on YouTube, and reviewing the Ueda Family Tree I made last year, I finally got around to feeling inspired to work on something non-Hetalia related! Not an excellent chapter, but a chapter nonetheless._


End file.
